Central Ohio school district launches ‘Press Pause’ to curb kids’ screen time

DUBLIN, Ohio (WSYX) — As the school year wraps up and summer begins, Dublin City Schools is addressing the challenge of increased screen time among children with a new initiative called Press Pause.

The program aims to support families by providing strategies to balance digital engagement and mental well-being.

Superintendent Dr. John Marschhausen highlighted the concern, saying, “If mom and dad are working and kids spend more time where they’re alone, we don’t want students sitting alone at home, staring at a screen for hours upon hours.” He pointed out as students’ screen time increases, so do their mental health risks.

What will the ‘Press Pause’ initiative do?

The Press Pause initiative will release videos twice a week, offering tips and tricks for parents to help their children disconnect. Dublin community member Dawn Anderson Butcher, a social work professor at Ohio State and a mother of a recent Dublin graduate, emphasized the importance of reducing screen time.

“Kids spend a lot of time on their cell phones,” she said. “And that time, foremost, can be better used in other types of settings.”

Butcher explained that excessive screen time can lead to stress and anxiety, as children may feel left out or exposed to negative interactions online.

What is the recommended amount of screen time per day for children?

She said the recommended amount of screen time per day for a child in two hours.

“I know as a parent that my child is doing way more than two hours, and so my charge is to take what is seven and move it to five,” she said. “We get it from five and move it to three, and the more and more we can reduce the time in this online forum in non-learning related experiences and replace it with alternative, positive youth development and learning experiences is only going to add more value to our young people.

Butcher advises parents to start by adding up how many hours a child spends on a screen every day, then dig into what they’re doing at that time. She recommends parents also take time to educate themselves about social media.

For me, the definition of success for ‘Press Pause’ will be if there are conversations in the home, if there are conversations around the dinner table about what’s acceptable and what’s not acceptable.” – Dr. Marschhausen

The Press Pause initiative is accessible to all parents, not just those in Dublin, through the district’s social media pages.