New South Wales to limit screen time in public schools, promote pen-and-paper learning

The New South Wales government has announced it will implement limits on screen time in public school classrooms and push for students to take part in daily “pen and paper” learning.

The state’s new regulations follow a similar announcement from the Victorian government and suggestions by the federal education minister, Jason Clare, that students might need a “digital detox”.

Under the new regulations, Kindergarten to Year 2 students will be restricted to 15 minutes per day of learning on individual student devices, such as tablets or laptops.

Older children will be allowed additional time: up to 30 minutes a day for students in Years 3 and 4; and 45 minutes for Years 5 and 6.

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High school students will have restrictions based on their individual subject. In Years 7 to 10, the use of personal digital devices will be limited to a quarter of subject time; senior high school students will be allowed to use devices for up to half their learning time.

The government also says there would be new guidelines that limit the use of screens for homework, including not recommending any such use for children younger than Year 5.

Guidelines will also recommend “a minimum of one hour a day” be devoted to pen and paper learning.

The screen limits will be recommended next year and become mandatory in NSW schools from 2028.

The state’s education minister, Prue Car, said the government’s research “is telling us that excessive screen use is a problem”. She said parents wanted screens to be used intentionally, rather than as a default.

“An entire generation of students [is] increasingly living in an online world,” Car said.

“We have a responsibility to ensure their health and education isn’t impacted by excessive screen use.

“We have already seen positive results from our ban on mobile phones, with fewer distractions in class and improved engagement.

“When the research is telling us students are spending as much as seven hours a day on screens, and we are seeing reading and writing skills go backwards for a whole generation of children, we have to act.”

The government announcement included a statement by the state’s chief paediatrician, Dr Helen Goodwin, who said too much time on screens impacts important daily activities that support healthy growth and development.

In a statement, the government said digital literacy would remain a part of the curriculum, but that the policy aimed to “reduce the cumulative impact of screen time” on students’ development.