Nearly Half of S.Korean Upper Elementary Students Use Smart Devices Over 2 Hours Daily: Survey

SEOUL, May 4 (Yonhap) -- Nearly one out of every 2 upper-grade elementary school students use smart devices, such as smartphones and tablets, for more than two hours a day after school, a survey showed Monday. The Korean Teachers and Education Workers' Union conducted the survey on 2,804 elementary school students in grades 4 through 6 from April 9-22 and released the results ahead of Tuesday's 104th Children's Day. Nearly half of them, or 49.2 percent, answered that they use smart devices for more than two hours after school. Specifically, 21.1 percent reported using smart devices for two to three hours, followed by 15.9 percent for three to four hours and 12.2 percent for more than four hours. In particular, it was found that smart device use increases as students' grade level rises. On the other hand, only 4.7 percent of the respondents said they do not use smart devices after school. Notably, 7 in 10 respondents said they use generative AI, such as ChatGPT and Gemini. In response to a question about their experience using AI, 57.4 percent reported using it "occasionally" and 14.7 percent reported using it "frequently."