How to Regulate Your Child’s Mobile Usage?

In the last couple of years, there has been a huge shift in behaviour when it comes to children using digital devices. Before Covid-19 disrupted our lives, the use of mobile devices was regulated for children and probably limited to watching a video or playing a game for entertainment. It was not exactly the ideal situation but one could still regulate and accept the usage.

 

With Covid-19 bringing everything to a standstill, there was no option but to adapt to Technology Driven Education in Kolkata, Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Chennai and even the 2-tier and 3-tier cities. Since the entire education system practically went digital, children got more and more access to mobiles and other forms of digital devices. While there were several benefits of this move, it came with its challenges as well.

 

Several CBSE affiliated schools in Kolkata expressed their concerns when they witnessed the increase in usage of mobile devices, even after we reached a point of normalcy. Parents were often left baffled as children informed that a digital device is required for educational purposes but was being misused. Many parents retorted to the cold turkey method of completely cutting off the availability of digital devices but it was hardly an adequate solution.

 

A child is going to require digital devices from time to time for classes or group studies or even doing some research for a project. So, a complete cut off is not a good solution. Instead, parents can try the following ways to regulate the usage –

 

Accept the problem

 

As a parent, our first duty to identify whether a child has an addiction issue or not. If the child wants to spend more time in front of a screen and a majority of this time is being spent to play games or just draw entertainment from online resources, we certainly have a problem. Accept the problem and notice the behavioural changes, temperament, overall attitude and body language. Based on these data points, work out the plan to help the child.

 

Preach and Practice moment

 

The easiest way to handle such scenarios is to build a rapport with the child, learn what they are doing and gradually explain the downside or the negative impact of what the child is doing. For instance, excessive screentime is a major problem for the eyes. Draw their attention towards the harm they are causing to themselves and get them to take significant breaks at first. Eventually, the duration of the breaks can be extended. Here is the important part, when you get your child to follow the break from digital devices, don’t end up indulging with the devices yourself. Instead, utilize this time to do something together. It will not only keep your minds off of the digital devices, it will also help you bond with your child.

 

No device zones

As a practice, make sure you and your child do not use digital devices at certain places and times. Family meal time at the dining table or bedtime or naptime should be free from digital devices. Spending such times without digital devices helps create a healthy environment for the family. The child can be asked about their day. You could share your experiences and share your stories which would help the child learn more about you.

 

Replace digital with physical

 

Most children use digital devices to play games. Not only does this increase the screentime, it also affects the child’s motor skills. Imagine your child playing a cricket on a digital device and in reality, they cannot even catch a ball. We certainly should not allow this. we should ensure that children indulge in more and more physical activities. It would help them stay away from the digital devices and more importantly, give them a healthy workout that would result in better lifestyle.

 

In conclusion, we agree that Technology Driven Education in Kolkata, Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Chennai and even the 2-tier and 3-tier cities in India has increased significantly, but it is does not mean that children should be allowed to be in front of a digital device for an abnormal amount of time. If a child has slipped into an excessive usage zone, as parents, we can follow the above-mentioned tips to help our children overcome their obsessions and focus their time and energy on physical activities or anything that keep them away from digital devices.