A story on NPR’s Morning Edition looks at the challenges parents face in setting limits on screen time for their kids when the activities the kids are engaging in on their screens seem educational.
Sarah Jane Tribble of NPR observes her son and a cousin playing Minecraft, “the megapopular video game that ranges from simple to complicated. But the basics are that players enter a world that looks sort of like Legos on a screen and build anything they want. Think houses, mountains and farms.”
Tribble writes, “I monitor and limit their screen time, taking pains to stick to the American Academy of Pediatrics’ recommendations.” However, she notes,
The academy has no set recommendations on educational screen time or even the use of different types of screens.
“We don’t know about iPads, cellphones, smartphones, new technology because there isn’t the research. When there is, believe me, we would be the first to be talking about it. But there ain’t!”
Earlier this summer Education Next published an excerpt from Greg Toppo’s new book, “The Game Believes in You: How digital play can make our kids smarter” The excerpt looks at how some games can build high-level math skills.
Mike Petrilli interviewed Greg Toppo about his book for the Education Next Book Club.
– Education Next
