Every Sunday, I wake up with an alert on my iPhone and laptop telling me my average screen time for the week, and whether it was higher or lower than the week before. I assume there are a lot of people nowadays who are embarrassed or even scared to check the amount of time they have spent on at least one of their devices, this includes me. Before online school, I never really worried too much about whether or not I was spending too much time staring at a screen but in the past year, it’s one of the things I have felt the most guilty about.
During an average day of online school, I spend a minimum of three hours on zoom. I spend at least two to three hours doing homework, and then on top of that, I end up spending some more time on entertainment. In addition, considering we’re not in school, my phone is the main way I communicate with my friends. All of that time adds up, but the question I have is:
Is screen time something I should even be thinking about? Is there even a way to lessen my time on a screen?
Of course, there are ways and things to do to lessen screen time. I could set screen time limits (which I know some of my peers or their parents have done). I have set screen time limits before, and it just didn’t work for me.
I found myself in a pickle. By the time I’d finish my homework, I’d have barely any time left to do whatever I wanted to do. It felt like I was almost punishing myself even though I was spending that screen time for school.
I could do an activity that doesn’t involve going on a screen, however, the truth is that after some time I end up wanting to go back on my phone anyways. I’m not sure that I have a solid answer or solution to this question that could work for everyone. If screen time is something you think about, I encourage you to find different things to occupy yourself with; to balance between being online and not.
Screen time is something that I think I should care about and keep in mind. It can have negative effects on people, like affecting their sleep. However, I don’t think that is something anybody should beat themselves up about. Devices surround us, and most people have to use them for work, school, or for communication with other people. Devices also give us the luxury of being able to entertain ourselves, be creative, and share things.
I think that the most important thing to do is try to find a balance with screen time usage, but also keeping in mind that it’s not your fault if you do end up spending a lot of time on a device.
The Balboa Buc 