“Parents set a bad example”: screens wreak havoc on children

In this month of January 2025, the Foundation for Children publishes the 3rd edition of its barometer Childhood and Digital. Carried out in partnership with IFOP, this study brings together the points of view of parents and childhood professionals regarding the impact of digital uses on the development of children aged 3 to 10, as well as the challenges of digital education. For this new study, the Fondation pour l’Enfance called upon a representative sample of 601 parents and 400 nursery and elementary school teachers.

Parents' digital use and their impact on children

In total, 52% of parents confirm that they have noticed negative consequences of their own use of screens on their children's behavior. However, only 23% say they are ready to turn off their notifications in the presence of their children. And it's not much better when it comes to television during meals, since only 41% of them say they are ready to turn it off.

© Fondation pour l’Enfance/IFOP

As for teachers, while the link between screen use and developmental difficulties in children is no longer in doubt, they believe that these developmental difficulties linked to screens are increasing, and 89% observe in particular an increase in learning difficulties (language, graphics, motor skills, etc.), without forgetting a real impact on sleep as well.

Despite everything, 61% of teachers say they use digital tools in class (38% in nursery school, and 68% in primary school). Among them, 72% use them daily, and 29% offer individual tools to students.

The fact remains that 93% of parents also say that screen use impacts children's development. In addition to implementing rules regarding the duration and/or times of use, more than 72% of parents surveyed insist on the importance of “compensating” for children's screen time with other useful activities that are beneficial to their well-being and development.

© Pexels/Max Fischer

The problem also comes from the sacrosanct smartphone, since 96% of teachers say they have already witnessed parents who stay on their phone “at the same time as they take care of their child“. Added to this is the fact that 54% of teachers say they have already witnessed children (in elementary school) bringing their own smartphones to class.

It is up to parents to set a good example regarding the proper use of screens, even if it seems that we unfortunately have a hard time perceiving the impact of our own digital use on our children's behavior.

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