What Happens to Kids When Schools Take Away Recess and Add More Screens?
Schools have been quietly chipping away at recess for nearly a decade, and a sweeping new update from the American Academy of Pediatrics says the consequences are real, measurable, and showing up well beyond elementary school. At the same time, the federal government has issued a formal advisory on children and screen time, calling on schools, parents, and tech companies to act. Both stories point in the same direction, but the path forward is far less obvious than the headlines suggest.
The Fight to Bring Recess Back
For the first time since 2013, the American Academy of Pediatrics has updated its recess guidelines, and the expansion is significant: the new recommendations extend to middle and high school students, not just younger children. EdSurge reporter Lauren Coffey has been reporting on what that guidance actually means for administrators under pressure to protect instructional time, whether the evidence on attendance and attention is strong enough to move policy, and why advocates say the answer may be simpler than schools are willing to admit.
A Federal Advisory With Unfinished Business
A formal screen time advisory from HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy calls for bell-to-bell phone bans, warning labels on apps, and the elimination of recommendation algorithms for children. But researchers are being careful: the evidence linking screen time to negative outcomes is correlation, not proven cause and effect, and the line between harmful social media and beneficial education technology is one that schools and families are still figuring out how to draw. EdSurge reporter Nadia Tamez-Robledo breaks down what the advisory actually asks of schools, why the tech industry response will be the real test, and what the carve-outs for students with IEPs reveal about the limits of a one-size-fits-all approach.
Stories Mentioned in This Episode
Recess Took a Break in Some Schools. A Push Is On to Bring It Back by Lauren Coffey
Surgeon General Advisory Wants Kids to Live Beyond the Confines of Screens by Nadia Tamez-Robledo
Join us on This Week with EdSurge where we ask whether the research is pointing toward a simpler solution than most schools are willing to try. Listen to the episode.
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