Time Spent on Screens in the New Distance Learning Model

In the age of distance and online learning, it is crucial to take breaks from sitting down and staring at our screens. But, after speaking with some students from the School, many are unable to do so. The distance learning schedule and the amount of work assigned by teachers, makes it difficult for students to prioritize their health. 

Junior, Mari Mckenna said, “I work from 9 am to 9 pm on my computer screen everyday during the school week”. These hours consist of zoom calls and homework after school hours. Even though the School has implemented rules about time spent on homework and time allowed for teachers to keep their students over zoom, the data that has been collected does not match up with these rules. 

 According to the School’s Administration, students should have no more than 30 minutes of homework a night, but many students said that they spend up to an hour to two hours on homework per class. According to a source in the freshman class, “I always have at least an hour of homework a night and some of my friends sometimes have even more than that,” she said. “It is hard to have classes all day with very few breaks and then have more than an hour of homework per class right after”. To decrease the amount of time spent on our screens, the freshman further stated how she wishes that teachers would assign either less homework or homework that does not require any use of screens.  

 Though both Mari and the source from the freshman class feel the online learning schedule isn’t working for them, they both appreciated the efforts made by the School to decrease the amount of screen time that students are spending a day. According to Mari, “Having Mondays designated to office hours has helped me tremendously as I am less stressed and I am not on my screen all day”. 

Distance learning has been a new and challenging opportunity for growth, but we are all certainly hoping to return to school and escape from our screens and reconnect with our classmates and teachers in person.