24 October 2024
From the Deputy, Preparatory Schools & ELC
Technology is a Great Servant but a Terrible Master
In Jonathan Haidt’s The Anxious Generation he writes about improving children’s mental health by banning phones during the school day and increasing free play. This has been extensively discussed in Michael Parker’s three articles at the end of last term.
This article takes a different angle, focusing on technology usage by primary students and the varying levels of technology uptake, particularly in computer gaming. Boys tend to be more voracious gamers than girls, and this disparity is one reason why female students often outperform their male counterparts in university, with studies showing that many young boys spend an average of 12 to 16 hours per week gaming.
This point made us think about the issues of screen time, educational and social development and our boys in the Prep Schools.
Jean Twenge, in her book, iGen: Why today’s super-connected kids are growing up less rebellious, more tolerant, less happy – and completely unprepared for adulthood, states that the changing profile of young people, which has been trending since 2011, derives from the overuse of technology. Her book surmises that too much screen time makes people more vulnerable, less optimistic, less confident and less happy.
Researcher Larry Rosen published findings from recent studies into the focus and attention levels of young people, and it conveyed some interesting data. As you read through the snapshots below, consider each of them against your own relationship with your smartphone. I found it quite revealing.
- University students unlock their phones at least every 15 minutes, look at them for about five minutes each time, and spend a total of four and-a-half hours a day on their devices.
- Online conversations are an important source of interaction for teens, accounting for much, if not most, of their social lives.
- When teens have their phones taken away, they become highly anxious.
- Phone-related anxiety is closely linked to poor academic performance and sleep deprivation.
- About 80 percent of teens say they rarely if ever sleep well, usually because they have a smartphone at their bedside and check it before going to sleep and during the night.
- The average adolescent finds it difficult to study for 15 minutes at a time.
- 80 percent of high school teachers and 63 percent of primary school teachers say technology is making students less able to sustain attention.
- Office workers are interrupted by technology (or interrupt themselves) every 3-5 minutes, take as much as 20 minutes to get back to work and feel stressed by having to work faster to make up for the lost time.
Rosen has these suggestions for messages that educators and parents should be giving children:
- Your brain needs an occasional ‘reset’. Primary-age children should spend no more than a half-an-hour at a time on a device, followed by a break at least that long. Preteens and adolescents should spend no more than 90 minutes at a time with technology, followed by at least 10-15 minutes on an activity that calms their brain – going outside, exercising, listening to music, meditating, taking a shower, having an in-person conversation, playing a musical instrument, practicing a foreign language.
- Sleep is vital. Ten hours is the recommended amount for primary school students, and kids should know that melatonin is naturally secreted in the hours before bedtime to produce sleepiness – unless they’re peering at a blue-light device.
- Tech-free zones and times. These might include the dinner table, restaurant meals, the car and the bedroom.
- Set limits on the amount of screen time allowed. The Australian Guideline for children recommends that 5–17-year-olds should have less than two hours of screen time a day, across all forms.
What about technology use and limits at home? The recommendations are quite clear, but it is very hard to make your children happy in the short term and keep their long-term well-being in mind. Those two goals conflict. Should you just stop accessing screens at home? ‘No’, Twenge says. ‘The sweet spot for mental health and happiness is having screen time but not using it to excess.’
Screen time for education, finding information, problem solving and creativity is one thing, but engaging with social media platforms like TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat and YouTube or using it to play Fortnite tends to have fewer positive outcomes.
As a parent, in relation to non-educational screen time for our students, which in my household, is most of the time, we need to think about screen time in the same way we think of junk food; it is a sometimes food, which we enjoy but we set limits to how often we indulge.
As a parent, you also need to be very aware of how often you disappear into your phone and the electronic world. None of us like it when our very observant and astute children call us out for our own inconsistency or double standards.
International Market
What Happened This Week
The Fortnight That Was
World Teachers’ Day
On behalf of the entire teaching staff at Lindfield, we would like to extend our heartfelt gratitude to the Parents and Friends (P&F) Association for their generous gesture in providing a special lunch to celebrate World Teachers’ Day.
This thoughtful act of kindness not only nourished our bodies but also our spirits, reminding us of the incredible support and appreciation we receive from our school community. It is moments like these that reinforce the strong bond between teachers, parents and students, making our school a truly special place to be.
Thank you once again for your unwavering support and for making World Teachers’ Day a memorable occasion for all of us. Your generosity and thoughtfulness are deeply appreciated.
Forensic Science Incursion
On Monday 21 October, our Year 6 students this week explored a variety of different forensic activities to solve a problem. Acting as both forensic scientists and as detectives, the students used their creative and critical thinking skills to analyse the forensic evidence and piece together a story.
Inquisitive Minds Incursion
On Wednesday 23 October, a selected group of Lindfield students joined Mrs Chan for a collaboration with Wyvern students involving mathematics workshops. The Inquisitive Minds ‘Out of the Box workshops’ are designed to enrich students by exposing them to a day of problem solving alongside like-minded peers. It was a great opportunity for our Prep students to work together, build their friendship and develop their learning. Thank you to all the students and staff who helped make the day such an enjoyable success!
Critical Thinking Workshop
Dr Peter Ellerton joined the College as our new Thinker in Residence and visited our Lindfield Campus on Wednesday. Dr Ellerton is Curriculum Director of the University of Queensland’s Critical Thinking Project and Senior Lecturer in the School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry and the School of Education.
Dr Ellerton’s specialty is to assist in enabling a ‘Teaching for Thinking’ focus across all year levels and subject areas, and the Year 5 students were enthralled to have him visit them in their classroom.
Sport – Week 1, Round 7
What an exciting return to sport for Term 4! The Touch Football teams kicked off the weekend in style, dominating both of their games with double-digit victories. In basketball, the Junior Black team had a hard-fought win, edging out Wyvern House by just a few points. However, the match of the weekend undoubtedly goes to the Senior Black Cricket team, who clinched an incredible victory, winning by just one run on the final ball with only one wicket remaining.
Congratulations to the following boys for earning the Spirit Values Award in Round 7:
Lindfield Spirit Recipients
Basketball
| Snr Black | Jimmy H | Jack L |
| Snr White | Dennis X | Owen T |
| Snr Grey | Janathan K | Luca V |
| Snr Orange | Benson Y | Chris W |
| Snr Green | Ian V | Caleb K |
| Snr Yellow | Daniel L | Blake T |
| Jnr Black | Matthew W | Tristan C |
| Jnr White | Luca F | Aarav D |
| Jnr Grey | Warren L | Finley C |
| Jnr Orange | Adrian L | Jack R |
| Jnr Orange | Nicholas E | William Q |
Cricket
| Snr Black | James E | Liam H |
| Snr White | Sebastian V | Angus R |
| Snr Grey | Hudson P | Luca Z |
| Year 4 | Ben F | Charlie S |
| Year 3 | Arthur L | Luca G |
Touch Football
| Snr Black | Sean S | Angus C |
| Snr White | Conor F | Austin C |
Staff Profile
We are happy to announce that, beginning next Wednesday, Anne Fulcher and her dog, Polly, will be visiting our campus once a week as part of a Lindfield Student Representative Council (SRC) initiative.
Anne volunteers with PAWS Pet Therapy, which is a registered charity and offers an inclusive service, based on safe and ethical practices, ensuring everyone can enjoy the PAWS experience.
The PAWS Pet Therapy Dogs are assessed for their ability to socialise, engage, obey commands and safely visit people in unfamiliar surroundings. All PAWS dogs love their work, are beautifully presented and are regularly rewarded for their efforts.
Should families have any questions about this initiative, please contact Mrs Edwards, Mr Trethewey or an SRC Representative.
Q. Can you please introduce yourself?
A. My name is Anne, and I have just retired after 50 years with The Shepherd Centre. This wonderful organisation assists babies as young as two weeks of age right up to young adults who have all ranges of hearing disabilities.
Q. Something other people don’t know about Polly?
A. Miss Polly came into our lives 15 months ago. She is an adorable miniature Tamaruke (type of labradoodle). Tamarukes are bred as care dogs. They are very smart, empathetic and sweet. She loves everyone, particularly our eight grandchildren.
Q. Anything else you’d like to share?
A. My husband’s father used to be the Senior House Master at Newington. His three sons all went to Newington, and their eldest, my husband Greg, was Dux of his year. Our three sons then went on to attend senior school as well, with our eldest following in his father’s footsteps.
