Parents

The appropriate amount of technology use and screen time for children at home varies depending on several factors, including age, the purpose of screen time, and individual circumstances. Please consider your child’s use of technology at home. We believe creative content production is more beneficial than passive consumption. There are some general guidelines based on the resources cited below that may help staff and families make informed decisions about screen time at home:

Age-Appropriate Limits:

• For children under 2 years old, it is generally recommended to avoid screen time altogether, except for video chatting with family or friends.
• For children aged 2 to 5, limit screen time to one hour per day of high-quality, educational programming. Co-viewing and discussing content with the child can enhance the learning experience.
• For children aged 6 and older, screen time can be extended, but it's important to balance it with other activities like physical play, reading, and social interactions.

Content Matters:

• Prioritize educational and age-appropriate content. Look for apps, games, and websites that promote learning, creativity, and collaboration. 

Establish Screen-Free Zones:

• Designate specific areas in your home, such as the dining room or bedrooms, as screen-free zones to promote family interactions and healthy sleep habits.
• Do not allow students to take devices to bedrooms at night.

Set a Schedule:

• Create a daily or weekly schedule that includes time for schoolwork, physical activity, social interactions, and screen time.

Monitor Usage:

• Have conversations with your child about screen time. Look at usage monitoring tools together and discuss concerns.
• Make sure other caregivers understand and consistently apply your expectations.
• Limit access to social media, especially for children under the age of 13.

Encourage Outdoor Play:

• There is evidence that excessive screen use leads to issues with eyesight and physical fitness. Physical activity and outdoor play address both of those concerns. Aim for at least one hour of physical activity per day.

Model Healthy Screen Habits:

• Children often model their behavior after adults. Be a positive role model by demonstrating healthy screen habits and limiting your own screen time.

Engage with Your Child:

•  Whenever possible, co-view or co-play with your child during screen time. Ask questions, discuss content, and use it as an opportunity to bond and learn together.
• Find device-free family time, such as during meals together, book sharing at bedtimes, or family game nights.
• Build open communication so if issues with content or online interactions arise, then your child feels comfortable discussing the problem with you.

Homework and Educational Use:

• For older elementary students, ensure that screen time related to homework or educational activities is productive and focused on learning. Bedrooms are not the ideal location for homework. Set aside a location that gives you good visibility of your child while they are completing homework.

Regular Screen-Free Time:

• Encourage regular breaks from screens to reduce eye strain and promote other activities.

These guidelines are general recommendations supported by research. Individual circumstances may require adjustments. It's essential to strike a balance between technology use and other aspects of a child's development to promote healthy physical, mental, and social growth. 
 

Most of the district-assigned Chromebooks use a USB C style charging system. If you wish to replace a missing charger, or would like a spare, feel free to order your own. Many different chargers will work. For your convenience, this Amazon link is for a popular cost-effective charger.

We have chosen GoGuardian Teacher as a service for our classrooms to: 

• Help students stay more focused when learning online
• Help assess students’ progress on class assignments
• Facilitate communication between teachers and students during class time 

GoGuardian complies with Connecticut student data privacy laws. The service helps teachers redirect off-task computer use, share resources directly to student screens, pause the use of devices, and enable staff to filter internet resources beyond the current settings from our network. 

GoGuardian’s web-based services operate when a student is signed in to their school-managed account while using a school-assigned Chromebook or Chrome tablet. Darien Public Schools enables teachers to use GoGuardian Teacher with students in their classes only during school hours from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Monday through Friday.

When a student is off campus, parents are responsible for supervising internet access and usage. We encourage you to discuss rules for appropriate internet usage with your child, and reinforce lessons of digital citizenship and safety with him or her.  
 

What digital applications or services are used in the classrooms?

Privacy contracts and a list of approved software resources for teaching and learning may be accessed here:

Instructional Software Library

A listing in the portal is not an expectation that your child will use that software. Specific questions about usage in the classroom should be directed to your child's teacher.

Darien Public Schools believes in a thoughtful and balanced approach to technology use in the classroom. Technology helps us to challenge students at all instructional levels, provides varied opportunities for success, and assists in measuring and monitoring learning growth. Students should learn, communicate, collaborate, and have opportunities to demonstrate their learning and creativity in many mediums including digital, face-to-face, and traditional paper and art supplies in ways that are appropriate for their age. Teachers' use of technology in the classroom should directly correlate to learning objectives and standards. We believe learning activities utilizing technology tools that include collaboration, critical thinking, and incorporate student creativity and ownership of learning have a deeper impact on depth of understanding.  

We recognize that technology is evolving rapidly, along with our understanding of the impacts of technology. We believe one of our responsibilities is to encourage healthy screen time habits for students. Screen time is a phrase referencing activities completed in front of an electronic screen, such as watching TV, working on a computer, or playing video games. We view screen time in two principal domains: consumption and creation. Passive (or recreational) consumption, such as watching a sitcom, or scrolling through a popular social media platform, doesn’t qualify as an educational use of technology. Instead, our teaching staff focuses on using technology in the promotion of learning, such as researching a topic of study, developing individualized skills in content areas, and in collaborative ways such as making a short video with partners.

Table 1 outlines research-based screen time guidance provided by three organizations that promote healthy practices for children in the United States. There is a great deal of agreement that common sense strategies for families include avoiding screens for an hour before bed, maintaining healthy sleep habits, and engaging with play that gets the body moving. In addition, all adults should role model healthy screen habits.

When we consider screen time from an educational perspective, advice from healthcare organizations and current research does not support strict time limits. Evidence demonstrates that well-planned use of educational technology improves student outcomes. However, emerging research correlates extended screen time to physical discomfort such as headaches and neck pain, and potentially promotes the development of myopia. That is why Darien Public Schools believes in the balanced use of technology in the classroom, with a focus on the intended learning outcomes.
 

Table 1. Screen Time Recommendations

	Ages 0-2*	Ages 2-5*	Ages 5-9	Ages 9+
American Academy of Pediatrics	Interactive video chatting with caregiver. (0-18m) High-quality programs viewed together with caregivers. Avoid allowing children to use media by themselves. (18-24m)	Limit media to 1 hour or less per day of high-quality programming.	No time recommendations. Develop a family media plan.	No time recommendations.  Develop a family media plan.
American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry	Limit to educational programming with a caregiver and video chats with a family member.	Limit non-educational screen time to about 1 hour per weekday and 3 hours on the weekend days.	Encourage healthy habits and limit activities that include screens.  No time recommendations.	Encourage healthy habits and limit activities that include screens. No time recommendations.
World Health Organization	Subdivided: under 18 months screentime is not recommended.  18 months to age 2 sedentary screen time should be no more than 1 hour; less is better.	Up to age 4, sedentary screen time should be no more than 1 hour; less is better.  No recommendation age 5.	No recommendations.	No recommendations.

*Darien Public Schools does not offer instructional services for students under the age of 3.

Darien Public Schools has implemented the following practices to maximize the benefits of technology use in the classroom:

Limit Apps on Assigned Student Devices: Students and teachers do not have access to add any app they want. Teachers must submit a work order request before new tools can be added to student devices. 

Usage Evaluation of Curricular Apps and Subscriptions:  Many subscription services such as IXL, CodeMonkey, and Formative provide district and classroom-level analytics. In addition, we are now looking at broad-level usage of applications across the district. Underutilized apps that do not contribute to student growth may be removed. Usage out of line with typical practices may warrant additional consideration.

Digital Citizenship and Responsible Use: Digital citizenship and responsible use are no longer single isolated lessons.  As online collaboration and publication become common practice in classrooms, discussions and expectations should become part of the classroom culture and practices. We will work with our media specialists, health and physical education teachers, and secondary technology teachers, who are experts in this area to promote the balanced use of media and digital tools in and out of the classroom.

Teacher Professional Development:  Staff training will encourage reflection on the purpose of the digital resources and an eye toward interactive, creative, and collaborative learning with technology. The PICRAT technology integration matrix is a helpful resource for teachers reflecting on their use of technology with students in the classroom.

Limit Education Device Access: Pre-K students do not have individual access to technology. Students in Kindergarten through fourth grade have classroom access to a device, which stays in the classroom. Students in grade five may begin bringing devices home for educational purposes. Take-home devices are provided for middle school students, while high school students provide their own devices for learning during the school day. There are limited exceptions to this based on identified learner needs.

Restrict Access to Personal Devices: New guidelines have been drafted to reduce access to personal devices such as cell phones and smartwatches during the K-8 school day.

Internet Filtering: All school devices are subject to content filtering intended to reduce the use of non-educational resources. K-8 staff may further limit access through tools such as Clever and GoGuardian. Staff actively monitors student use of technology in classrooms.