Screen time side effects: Children exposed to more screen time in early childhood may perform worse in reading and maths when they reach school age, according to a large Canadian study published in JAMA Network Open.
Researchers tracked more than 5,000 children recruited between 2008 and 2023, including 3,322 pupils in grade 3 (ages 8–9) and 2,084 in grade 6 (ages 11–12). Parents reported screen use in early childhood; later academic performance was measured using Ontario’s standardised tests. On average, grade 3 children logged 1.6 hours/day of screen time and grade 6 children 1.8 hours/day.
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Each additional hour of daily early-childhood screen time was associated with a 9% lower likelihood of achieving higher overall grades in grade 3, and a 10% lower likelihood of higher maths grades by grade 6. Reading and maths scores were generally lower with more TV and digital media exposure (TV, computers, smartphones), while writing appeared less affected. Video game use was linked to lower grade 3 reading and maths performance in girls, but not boys.
“Screen time is part of everyday life for most families, and high exposure may have a measurable impact on academic outcomes,” said Dr. Catherine Birken of SickKids, a senior author of the study. First author Xuedi Li added that interventions should consider both content and context, what children watch and whether they view alone or with caregivers.
The World Health Organization advises no screen time for children under one year and no more than one hour per day for ages 1–4, largely to preserve physical activity.