Research articles related to screen time: (screen time effects on … )

• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40549948/ (2025 systematic review on …prevention of digital addiction in the school environment (!!!). “Overall, given the promising results, policymakers should strongly consider exploring possibilities of systemic inclusion of digital addiction interventions within the school curriculum.”)

• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40489178/ (2025 systematic review on …social-emotional; “Instead of merely emphasizing the reduction of screen time, guidelines should prioritize improving the quality of screen content and enhancing social interactions during screen use.”)

• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40352281/ (2025 systematic review on …behavior, anxiety, academics, BMI)

• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41071548/ (…school test scores)

• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41301302/ (…social emotional effects on kindergarteners)

• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40900651/ (…excessive early childhood exposure sets a bad trajectory)

• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30606703/ (2019 systematic review on …health and well-being)

• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36787301/ (…sleep, fatigue, academic performance in school age children)

• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40531519/ (…mental health effects, suicidal ideation in teens/tweens)

• https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9933860/ (…neurophysiological and behavior effects in tweens)

• https://www.oxjournal.org/how-does-technology-affect-the-attention-spans-of-different-age-groups/ (…attention span)

• https://healthmatters.nyp.org/what-does-too-much-screen-time-do-to-childrens-brains/

• https://www.businessinsider.com/how-screen-time-affects-childrens-brains-nih-study-2018-12

• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39982728/ (2025 systematic review on…myopia/nearsightedness)

• https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11186094/ (meta analysis on …myopia/nearsightedness)

• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33639912/ (…obesity, activity level, learning, dry eyes)

• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35856173/ (…health related behaviors)

A HUGE research clearinghouse on detriments of screen time

Tech and Society Lab at NYU Stern run by the legendary author and advocate Jonathan Haidt

AAP statement on Screen Time at School

Articles in the News Media:

Reading Is Hard to Teach. Can AI Help?

March 2026 NYT article on the proliferation of screens in schools since the pandemic, featuring Evanston’s recent campaign against this

March 2026 NYT article on Screen Remorse. Schools’ heavy reliance on technology has not meaningfully improved academic performance or graduation rates. Poignant quote: “But after tens of billions of dollars of school spending on Chromebooks, iPads and learning apps, studies have found that digital tools have generally not improved students’ academic results or graduation rates.” 

• At least 10 states have introduced legislation to limit or ban device use in elementary classrooms

• Neuroscientist Jared Cooney Horvath's research shows student performance typically declines when traditional learning is replaced with digital tools

April BBC article on Sweden nixing 1:1 screens and going back to all paper and pencil learning

May 2026 NYT article on declining nationwide reading and math scores

And a related May 2026 NYT article for looking up local score trends. From 2015-2025, Oak Park reading scores dropped by 1.9 grade levels and math scores dropped by 0.6 grade levels. Other local districts had less significant drops.

See the Education Scorecard referenced in the two above NYT articles: https://educationscorecard.org/

Explore IAR data in Illinois: https://www.illinoisreportcard.com/

May 2026 Atlantic article “What Happened After a Teacher Ditched Screens”

June 2026 NTY article “‘Teachers Are Going to Hate It’: How Social Media Apps Hooked Teens at School”

Other links, facts and figures:

• As of a Jan 2025 article in the Wall Street Journal, students in grades 1–12 average 98 minutes daily on school-issued devices during the school day, peaking at nearly two and a half hours in sixth grade.  

• UNESCO research warns that overreliance on technology can distract students and impede learning 

• The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP, aka "The Nation's Report Card) shows reading scores are down nationally in 2024 (the last year of the assessment) for both 4th and 8th grades, marking the third period of consecutive reading test score declines.  

  • Declines were measured across all states in the U.S. in 2024 compared to prior testing period in 2022. 

  • A third (33%) of 8th graders are not even reading at the NAEP Basic level—a greater percentage than ever before. Which means, a third of 8th graders likely could not identify basic literary elements in a text such as the order of events, character traits, and main idea.

• A March 2026 analysis from the Curriculum Insight Project adds that reading comprehension is lower when young children read on screens, handwriting promotes learning in ways that typing does not, and that states with the strongest recent reading outcomes are those that have maintained low-tech, book-centered approaches.