I feel blessed to have you, this Screenagers community, to learn together how best to help our kids thrive in our complicated tech world.
One thing that is key in our work together is ensuring we include the voices of young people — something that, of course, is present in the Screenagers film trilogy.
Their input is crucial, and that is why I have 2 important questions for us to ask them as they transition back to school.
As you know, I am particularly focused on improving our kids' mental health, especially in the aftermath of COVID. One major lever is decreasing personal devices in schools.
Below are the two top questions — ( we are doing this as an actual anonymous survey of your kids (grades 1st through college) if they will participate and you give permission.
The #1 question
“If you were the chief decision maker of the school you will be at this year, what cellphone policy would you put in place for classroom time?”
The #2 question
“If you were the chief decision maker of the school you will be at this year, what cellphone policy would you put in place for break and lunchtime?”
Key Safety Point: We are not collecting emails or personal information! And if your child is under 13, please write in their answers so we comply with the law.
Because their input is so important, I have included a few other questions, and the best part is that once we get answers, I will share them with all of you, especially the youth.
CLICK HERE FOR THE ANONYMOUS SHORT SURVEY
And by all means, please forward this email to other families with children who may be willing to help us by filling this out.
Why this question?
Having your child explain their views will focus their attention on the topics as they begin their school journey.
It is wonderful that science shows us that these policies are an effective lever for improving the mental health of our children.
I spoke in the news this week about a school district in Arizona making great changes.
Meanwhile, UNESCO is talking about its concerns about phones.
This is such an important area for discussion. In 2017, our Screenagers team launched the Away For The Day campaign, and fortunately, there is a lot of movement happening around the country regarding schools and their cellphone policies. For instance, some schools have policies that require phones to be put in shoe pockets during class time in high schools or away in lockers in middle schools.
Thank you for asking your child to help with this survey and for forwarding this email to other youth who – with their parent’s permission – may also want to help.
I feel blessed to have you, this Screenagers community, to learn together how best to help our kids thrive in our complicated tech world.
One thing that is key in our work together is ensuring we include the voices of young people — something that, of course, is present in the Screenagers film trilogy.
Their input is crucial, and that is why I have 2 important questions for us to ask them as they transition back to school.
As you know, I am particularly focused on improving our kids' mental health, especially in the aftermath of COVID. One major lever is decreasing personal devices in schools.
Below are the two top questions — ( we are doing this as an actual anonymous survey of your kids (grades 1st through college) if they will participate and you give permission.
Educators and parents unite worldwide to create new policies keeping cellphones away for the entire school day. Research consistently shows the benefits of phone-free classrooms, as students admit their devices hinder concentration and studying. The empowering "Away For The Day" campaign, launched in 2017, has enabled parents and educators to effectively bring these policies to schools. Discover how countries like the Netherlands, Finland, and France are embracing the initiative, along with similar efforts in Australia and England.
READ MORE >
Recently I received a wonderful email from Adam Slusher, vice principal at Pennsville Middle School in New Jersey, who did a thoughtful rollout of Away For The Day, using many of the free resources we’ve put together to help people through the process. What I think is great about the letter is that it maps out in great detail the rules they created as well as details on how they implemented Away For The Day.
READ MORE >
It has been four years since my team and I launched The Away For The Day (AFTD) campaign to help people get sound cell phone policies into schools. The research remains clear that when phone use is limited at schools, students do better socially, academically, and emotionally. Given the enormous increases in screen time and social isolation over the past two years, as well as the jump in mental health problems, ensuring healthy phone policies is more important than ever. Today, I share some wonderful examples of how the AFTD Campaign has led to real changes in schools across the country.
READ MORE >for more like this, DR. DELANEY RUSTON'S NEW BOOK, PARENTING IN THE SCREEN AGE, IS THE DEFINITIVE GUIDE FOR TODAY’S PARENTS. WITH INSIGHTS ON SCREEN TIME FROM RESEARCHERS, INPUT FROM KIDS & TEENS, THIS BOOK IS PACKED WITH SOLUTIONS FOR HOW TO START AND SUSTAIN PRODUCTIVE FAMILY TALKS ABOUT TECHNOLOGY AND IT’S IMPACT ON OUR MENTAL WELLBEING.
