Spain hits rock bottom in the PISA report. Spanish students have obtained the worst results since it began to be published, with an especially sharp decline in reading comprehension and mathematics. Pupils achieve 451 points in reading, 457 in mathematics and 477 in science, below the OECD averages.
The disaster has led experts to analyze the reasons for the educational deterioration of young Spaniards, where they highlight the massive emergence of screens in the daily lives of children and adolescents as one of the main factors that explain this decline. What role are screens playing? Experts are clear: excessive use can cause a loss of ability to maintain concentration, a decrease in reading for pleasure and a reduction in the time that adolescents dedicate to activities away from digital devices.
More and more children are presenting emotional and learning problems related to the use of screens. Specifically, attention and concentration difficulties, sleep disturbances, irritability, low tolerance for frustration and self-esteem problems. It’s not about demonizing screens, but about helping them develop a healthy relationship with them. But… how to get it?
High percentage of use of technological devices
In Spain, this digital transformation begins earlier and earlier. The latest report on childhood and technology from SaveFamily indicates that 90% of minors use devices connected to the internet and more than 81% spend more than an hour a day in front of screens during the week, a percentage that exceeds 90% on weekends. Furthermore, three out of four adolescents already have a smartphone before they turn 13 years old.
“The problem is not only how much time minors spend online, but also how the platforms are designed to retain them. We are faced with systems that encourage continued use and make disconnection difficult, which has a direct impact on the academic performance of young people,” says Jorge Álvarez, CEO of SaveFamily.
One of the most worrying symptoms is precisely in reading. The OECD detects more difficulties when students have to deal with long texts. The OECD places the critical point after 400 words, when problems begin to be observed in maintaining attention and processing information. The organization relates this phenomenon to increasingly hurried reading in a context marked by the immediate consumption characteristic of social networks. Furthermore, they appreciate that where the use of screens is less, educational results tend to be better.
Added to this loss of attention is the difficulty that adolescents themselves have in regulating their relationship with devices. According to the SaveFamily report, almost half, 48%, admit to having lost control of the time they spend in front of screens and one in four uses their mobile phone as an escape route to forget their problems. Another 17% claim to have tried to reduce their use without success and 11% admit that the telephone negatively affects their school performance.
“We are seeing how technology enters the lives of minors without a progression adapted to their development. This generates overexposure that can have devastating effects on their emotional well-being, their ability to concentrate, their social relationships and, therefore, also on their level in the classrooms,” warns Álvarez.
The problem is not limited to academic performance either. Adolescents who spend more than three hours a day on digital platforms double the risk of suffering psychological problems, according to data collected by SaveFamily. The report also warns of anxiety associated with disconnection, constant need for digital interaction and even aggressive responses when trying to remove the phone. In this context, screens cease to be solely a technological tool and begin to occupy a central role in the daily habits of young people.
Content processed with algorithms and artificial intelligence
A new layer is added to this: algorithms and artificial intelligence allow us to continually personalize what each user sees. In the case of minors, the combination of early access and algorithmic systems can cause young people to abuse screens excessively without even being aware of it.
“Current technologies not only offer content, but constantly adapt it to the user, which increases their ability to influence. For these reasons, experts recommend that minors have a gradual digital immersion to reinforce digital education and move towards a progressive and supervised incorporation of technology during childhood,” explains the SaveFamily expert.
Experts recommend that minors have a staggered digital immersion to reinforce digital education
The educational regression implicit in the PISA report also points to the worsening of discipline in the classrooms, and to social, school and family factors; But it is the screens and the expansion of the smartphone that generate the most concern among experts, who are looking for a formula to prevent this hyperconnectivity from affecting their ability to read, concentrate and learn.
The issue is no longer just about limiting the number of hours spent in front of screens, but about establishing when, how and why they should be used during the different stages of development. A progressive incorporation of technology, accompanied by digital education and family supervision, can be key to preventing the intensive use of devices from interfering with essential capabilities for learning.
