Open Letter to Maryland State Department of Education Superintendent Karen Salmon: Don't Abandon Digital Best Practices

 September 10, 2020

 

 

Dear Secretary Salmon,

 

Last year, Maryland’s public schools received the Health and Safety Best Practices Guidelines for Digital Devices that you signed and made mandatory reading for the state’s 25 school districts’ and 57,000 full-time teachers.

 

I advocated hard for the bill that led to these guidelines, HB1110, and our Board of Education favored the bill.

 

These Best Practices state:

 

· Consider age and developmental level of students and recognize the importance of time limits. It is recommended that the use of digital devices with younger students be limited.

· Limit time on devices  – 10 to 20 minutes is recommended. Remind students to take eye and stretch breaks. (A separate document on this topic promotes the 20/20/20 rule regarding frequent eye breaks.)

 

Yet last Tuesday, MSDE called for at least 3.5 hours per day of live virtual instruction across all grade levels, imposing potential health threats to Maryland’s children.

 

The American Academy of Pediatrics, which is cited in the above MSDE document, states four very serious conditions advanced by screen time.

 

1.     Obesity. The odds of being overweight were almost 5 times greater for adolescents who watch more than 5 hours of TV per day compared with those who watch 0 to 2 hours.¹ This study’s findings contributed to recommendations by the American Academy of Pediatrics that children have 2 hours or less of sedentary screen time daily.

 

2.     Sleep Disturbances. Media use can negatively affect sleep.²  Exposure to light (particularly blue light) and activity from screens before bed affects melatonin levels and can delay or disrupt sleep.³ Media use around or after bedtime can disrupt sleep and negatively affect school performance.⁴

 

3.     Addiction. Children who overuse online media are at risk of problematic Internet use,⁵ and heavy users of video games are at risk of Internet gaming disorder.⁶

 

4.     Academic decline. A growing body of evidence suggests that the use of media while engaged in academic tasks has negative consequences on learning.^7,8

 

Other districts around the country are solving for remote learning with outdoor classrooms, independent study projects and other innovative enrichment opportunities. In Montgomery County, leaders give students Wednesday offline every week to allow them to explore and learn organically and independently.

 

I ask that MSDE give local districts the autonomy to create virtual learning plans that respond to local stakeholder input — primarily, our teachers. Passing down statewide mandates and thresholds will inhibit creative solutions, create physical and mental health consequences,⁹ and yield proven unremarkable academic results.¹⁰

Lisa Cline

 

MCPS Parent and Safe Technology Advocate