The “screen,” as it has come to be known, has become a ubiquitous element in the modern classroom. In the United States roughly 94% public schools surveyed provide digital devices to their students (Cherkin, 2024). The range of devices span from tablets, such as iPads, to full on laptops such as the Google Chromebook. According to a separate study, nearly 41% of children have a tablet by the age of 2, by the age of 4 that grows to 58% and by the age of 8 nearly 1 in 4 children have their own cellphone (Mann et al., 2025) at home. Within that age range, the average daily use of a screen ranges from two hours and eight minutes to three and a half hours per day (Mann et al., 2025). The activities that children are engaging in range from watching videos (60%), to homework (1%), and reading (4%) (Mann et al, 2025). With regard to socioeconomics, households that earn under $50,000 see children using screens almost twice as much as those households earning over $100,000 (Mann et al., 2025) indicating that the digital divide is shifting from that of a purely economic issue to one that incorporates a wider variety of contextual and situational factors (Deng & El Hag, 2024).  

The effects of screentime on children are measurable. Studies have shown that increased screentime leads to lower standardized test scores (Li, et al., 2025), cognitive development and behavioral issues, increased social anxiety and obesity (Sidiq et al., 2025). Further studies drew a correlation between the amount of screentime and the negative effect on the performance within school (Feng, et al., 2025). Overall, the effects of screentime on school aged children have proven detrimental. 

Screentime became an increasing part of the educational world during the COVID-19 pandemic that swept the globe in 2019. The rapid and unplanned transition from in-class learning to online, remote learning led to a change in the educational process that has altered how schools’ function. Additionally, because of the lockdown during the pandemic, the use of tools like Zoom and platforms such as Xbox became more popular as they offered the only social outlet at the time. The screen not only acted as the gateway to all human knowledge, but it was also the prevalent method of communication with the outside world for months. 

This is not to say that all screentime has a distinct negative effect on kids. There are ways in which screens are beneficial. These benefits are largely centered around how the information is presented to students and how that integrates into their learning environment. While the mindless “doom scrolling” of social media generally has negative impacts, providing structured, well-designed media has a more positive effect on how students learn and retain information. Studies have even shown that video games can provide an advantage, applying digital skills which can unlock hidden benefits to development (Hampton & Hales, 2025). 

While the notion of screentime currently has largely negative connotations, we believe that a strong curriculum combined with physical interactions can have a net positive effect on the student’s ability to succeed. For example, the Piper Make Base Station is a tool that integrates a Minecraft-like interface to deliver information and support practical circuit building. This system uses a breadboard, resistors, LEDs, and jumper cables connected to a Raspberry Pi Pico. This setup enables students to explore and experiment with physical equipment, demonstrating how real-world systems function. Students can observe the results of their work both on the digital platform displayed on the screen and on the physical circuit they have built. Initial surveys of students using the Make systems indicate strong increases in student confidence and abilities in the areas of both software development and understanding the basics of circuits and electronics. 

One of the key elements that makes this effective is the recognition that the screen the Piper Make system relies on, while necessary, is used as a tool that becomes not only secondary to the building process but also relies on the building process to complete the task. This approach uses the screen to deliver engaging learning content but requires students to move away from it to complete the associated tasks. Consequently, this provides a compelling way to present instructional material while decreasing the overall screen time required for learning. 

The idea of screentime is not going to disappear within our educational systems. To make the most of the use of these tools, careful thought and implementation must be given as to how content is developed and deployed. The ability to present engaging content that captures the student’s attention in an active manner, while encouraging the same student to engage outside of the screen, is a step in reducing the amount of daily screentime while still providing an effective and interactive learning platform.

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Works Cited

Cherkin, E. (2024, December 5). iPads don't belong in school: 6 fallacies about EdTech and 6 suggestions for a tech-intentional school framework. The Screentime Consultant. https://thescreentimeconsultant.com/resources/essays/ipads-dont-belong-in-school 

Deng, L., & El Hag, A. H. (2024). Digital inequality and two levels of the digital divide in online learning: A mixed methods study of underserved college students. Journal of Information Systems Education, 35(2), 200–214. https://doi.org/10.62273/SSIF6302

Feng, Ren, & Shi. (2025). The relationship and mechanism of screen time and academic performance among adolescents: An empirical study based on CEPS. Frontiers in Public Health. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2025.1533327

Gabriel E. Hales & Keith N. Hampton (2025): Rethinking screen time and academic achievement: gender differences and the hidden benefit of online leisure through digital skills, Information, Communication & Society, DOI: 10.1080/1369118X.2025.2516542

Hampton, K., & Hales, G. E. (2025). Rethinking screen time and academic achievement: Gender differences and the hidden benefit of online leisure through digital skills. Information, Communication & Society. https://doi.org/10.1080/1369118X.2025.2516542

Li, X., Keown-Stoneman, C. D. G., & Borkhoff, C. M. (2025). Screen Time and Standardized Academic Achievement Tests in Elementary School. JAMA Network Open. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2839927

Mann, S., Calvin, A., Lenhart, A., & Robb, M. B. (2025). The Common Sense census: Media use by kids zero to eight, 2025. Common Sense Media. https://www.commonsensemedia.org/sites/default/files/research/report/2025-common-sense-census-web-2.pdf

Muppalla, S. K., Vuppalapati, S., Pulliahgaru, A. R., & Sreenivasulu, H. (2023). Effects of Excessive Screen Time on Child Development: An Updated Review and Strategies for Management. Cureus. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10353947/

Sidiq, M., Janakiraman, B., Kashoo, F., Jastania, R., Alhusayni, A. I., Alzahrani, A., Chahal, A., Thiyagarajan, A., Khan, I., Kumar, C., Vasanthi, R. K., Alanazi, F., Ahmad, M., Sehgal, C. A., Khan, S., & Alghadier, M. (2025). Screen time exposure and academic performance, anxiety, and behavioral problems among school children. PeerJ, 13, Article e19409. https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.19409

About the author

Kris Rockwell Kris has been involved in the learning industry for over twenty years, working in gaming, simulation, and learning standards. Outside of his work in learning, Kris has been working in the nonprofit world supporting organizations that focus on learning, equality, entrepreneurship, and conservation.