Melbourne parents say they have been disturbed to learn their children are spending time in front of TVs and other screens at childcare centres, as experts warn screen time can have negative impacts on development for toddlers and preschoolers.
Childcare industry bodies say “passive” screen time should not be used in long daycare centres, but that digital technologies could complement curriculum if used effectively.
Rosie Cuppaidge and her 14-month-old daughter Ione.Credit: Paul Jeffers
The Australian Department of Health recommends no screen time for children younger than two years old, and no more than one hour per day for children aged 2-5.
The Australian Institute of Family Studies says there is strong evidence that excessive screen time for young children can have negative impacts on their weight, motor and cognitive development, and social and psychological wellbeing.
But some educators use screen time to help them take a break if the class is getting rowdy.
“There were times when the children were getting out of hand and we did get it out, I admit,” said a Melbourne educator who asked not to be identified.
Parents have raised concerns screens aren’t being used appropriately in childcare.Credit: Getty Images
“We would sit in front of the group holding the iPad, to catch a breather for ourselves. It’s really easy to judge until you’re in the environment yourself.”
A mother raised the issue of screen time after she toured a centre and saw youngsters watching children’s YouTube channel Cocomelon, but was told they didn’t watch more than 20 minutes a day.
Another mother in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs with a two-and-a-half-year-old, who spoke with The Age, said an educator would often just be holding an iPad showing YouTube for kids to watch, without engaging.
“It was at the end of the day during pick-up, so I just thought she was over it by then. But it happened often,” the mother said.
An Albert Park mother of two said she was “a bit disturbed” after visiting a family daycare centre to find a row of children listlessly watching ABC Kids.
Another said when her children were sometimes watching Bluey on an iPad when she arrived to collect them from their Montessori centre, which prompted her to wonder why she paid for childcare when her children could be watching TV at home.
“I don’t want to blame educators who do it, it’s not the educator’s fault, they are operating in a system that’s not supporting them,” the mother said.
Early Childhood Australia (ECA) chief executive Samantha Page said her organisation had no data on how widely screens were used passively, but said there were many active, creative ways to use digital technology in early childhood that complemented the curriculum.
The ECA has developed guidelines for the use of digital technology in childcare settings, and calls for a “contextual approach” to using screens.
Samantha Page from Early Childhood Australia says there are many active, creative ways to use digital technology in early childhood to complement the curriculum.
Paediatrician Nitin Kapur said that educators actively engaging alongside screens in an educational context would not be regarded as passive screen time.
“What we don’t want is that [the child] is given one hour of screen time at the kindy or the daycare, and then they go home and have more exposure,” he said.
“[It] should be clearly told to the parents that the child had half an hour on the screen or one hour, so that then parents make an informed decision of should they be giving any more time.”
Australian Childcare Alliance president Paul Mondo.Credit:
Kapur referred to a 2023 Japanese study that shows children who spend more than the recommended amount of time watching a screen have reduced cognition.
Australian Childcare Alliance president Paul Mondo said that in his experience, TV was not used in early learning services.
“It would be very uncommon for regular TV or movies to be shown to children during their time in early learning settings. However, there may be circumstances where TV programs are used in the context of the classroom’s educational programs,” Mondo said.
He said screens and technology could be valuable tools for learning purposes, to spark conversation or illustrate lessons in the curriculum.
Professor Hayley Christian from the Kids Research Institute Australia said young children should only engage with screens with an educator or parent.
“Young children need many bursts of energetic play throughout the day, so dancing along to The Wiggles or copying the movements of animals on a large screen can help support learning activities while also enabling them to be active and develop their fundamental skills,” Christian said.
South Melbourne mother Rosie Cuppaidge, who has a 14-month-old daughter Ione, said she would prefer no television at early learning centres and that screen use should be discouraged among children.
“There’s enough going on at childcare that screens shouldn’t be needed,” she said.
“But on occasion it doesn’t hurt, and I trust the educators know what they are doing as professionals.”
Associate Professor Catherine Hamm from the University of Melbourne said digital technologies were like any other learning resource in the classroom.
“You would consider the ways in which you used it like you would any other piece of equipment,” Hamm said.
“Are you just putting the children in front of a digital device and doing something else, or are you collaborating with them? … You’re using it as you would read a book or some other piece of equipment in your classroom.”
Hamm believed there were other ways children could have downtime, rather than watching a screen.
“If it is a long day – some children are there for 10 hours – you know there’s beautiful yoga and lots of different ways that I think downtime can be offered,” she said.
“I don’t think that there’s a place for ... consuming digital stuff in a passive way.”
Hamm said there were no guidelines around telling parents if their children had been watching screens.
“Different centres might have policies about that. I think that’s becoming more common for centres to have a digital technology policy,” she said.
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