The U.S. Surgeon General says screen time is a public health concern. Here’s what schools should know.
The U.S. Surgeon General recently released new advisory identifying excessive screen time as a growing public health concern for children and adolescents. The timing is significant: Today, about 1 in 5 teens use TikTok and YouTube almost constantly. As technology, social media, gaming, and A.I. become increasingly embedded in students’ daily lives, schools and families are asking an important question: how can we help students build healthier habits and a stronger balance with technology?
The advisory offers several recommendations for schools and families, while also reinforcing the importance of helping students navigate technology proactively, not fearfully.
📱 What does the advisory say?
The advisory highlights how excessive screen use can impact students differently depending on their age and stage of development.
Concerns by age group
- Young children: Developmental, cognitive, and language risks
- School-aged children: Poorer educational outcomes, sleep issues, and unhealthy habits
- Teenagers: Mental health and behavioral concerns tied to social media use
Suggested screen time guidelines
- 18 months and under: No screens
- Under 6 years old: Less than one hour per day
- Ages 6–18: Around two hours per day
While restricting social media and device use may seem like a quick and easy fix, it can also prevent students from harnessing the benefits of tech — like connecting with friends, expressing creativity, or learning a new skill. Instead, the advisory encourages schools and families to focus on helping students build healthier habits, stronger balance, and more intentional technology use both in and outside the classroom.
🏫 What guidance does the advisory give schools?
The report encourages schools to create learning environments that support focus, connection, and healthier daily habits.
School recommendations include:
- Limiting device use during school hours
- Exploring “bell-to-bell” phone policies
- Creating more hands-on, offline learning activities
- Using more pen-and-paper learning experiences
The advisory also introduces the “Five D’s”:
- Discuss expectations around tech and screen use
- Encourage open conversations about devices, social media, gaming, and online behavior both at school and at home with our Family Standards Agreement. For K-5 students, check out our Elementary School Edition.
- Do model healthy screen use
- Students can’t be what they can’t see. Modeling balance, focus, and intentional tech habits can help reinforce healthy expectations. Highlight healthy role models at your school with the #WinAtSocial Lesson: Teaming up with grown-ups to accomplish your goals.
- Delay access when developmentally appropriate
- Creating age-appropriate boundaries around devices and social media can help students build healthy habits over time. Teach thoughtful decision-making in K-2 before your youngest students start swiping, scrolling, and posting.
- Divert toward offline activities
- Encourage students to balance screen time with creativity, movement, relationships, and real-world experiences. Check out pro tips from students themselves on how they’re striking a balance with technology.
- Disconnect with intentional screen-free time
- Creating structured moments away from screens can support focus, sleep, relationships, and well-being. Empower students to set healthy tech habits with the #WinAtSocial Lesson: One more scroll vs. one more goal.
When students, educators, and families are aligned on tech expectations, students are more likely to build consistent habits around focus, balance, communication, and responsible decision-making online and offline. That’s why many schools are looking beyond restriction-only approaches and toward long-term strategies that help students navigate technology with confidence and character.
💡 Moving beyond restriction-only approaches
Phone policies and screen limits can support learning environments — but students also need opportunities to practice modern life skills.
Students need opportunities to practice:
- Focus and self-awareness
- Responsible decision-making
- Healthy communication
- Managing online pressure
- Building balance with technology
Today’s students are growing up in a world shaped by social media, A.I., gaming, and constant notifications. Helping students navigate that world successfully requires more than rules alone.
It requires modern life skills education that feels relevant, proactive, and student-respected that fits your school’s culture, whether your classrooms are screen-free or tech-enabled.
No matter your tech policy, The Social Institute’s turnkey lessons, family resources, and real-world conversations strengthen healthy habits and student well-being.
Because students don’t just need screen limits. They need the skills to navigate technology for life.
Ready to help students build healthier tech habits?
Learn more about The Social Institute’s student-respected approach to supporting students as they navigate the ever-evolving world of social media, A.I., and technology — and read the full U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory on the impact of excessive screen use on students.