The
Maryland State Medical Society and the Maryland Chapter of the American
Academy of Pediatrics endorse screen safety bills HB866 and SB1089:
Saturday, February 25, 2017
Start writing and calling now! Senate Educational, Health and Environmental Affairs Committee will hear companion legislation, Senate Bill 1089, on March 15th at 1:00.
Teachers and Moms are speaking out!
For the HB866 Ways and Means Committee Hearing, Feb. 24, 2017:
My name is Erica Mah, a parent with 2 children in Baltimore County Public Schools. I am sorry that I am unable to be there in person to give testimony in favor of HB 866 which I wholeheartedly support.
But I have an obligation Friday afternoon and evening to my daughter’s school’s Literature Night where we celebrate favorite books - a most worth cause I am sure you’d all agree. We celebrate books that children may have read on paper or on screen or even listen to as an audiobook. Children are now able to access books in so many ways because of technology and in my opinion more access to books is always better.
But reading books using technology, and using technology at all, needs to be done with guidance. Students should not listen to devices at a volume setting of 100 while using headsets (yes, 100 is the maximum). Students should not read on a screen in a darkened classroom. Nor should they read in font that is smaller than 12 points. Or read slouched over a desk or with their eyes up as close as 6 inches to the screen. Or play games while they are supposed to be reading, extending their time on the screen with flashing lights and animation.
But these are all things I have seen children do in classrooms using their BCPS issued devices. These are issues I have asked BCPS to address, in particular to elementary school children as young as 6 who now have their own devices.
Despite the massive rollout of devices to our young children, BCPS does not have health and safety guidelines for their devices. Nothing about limiting the amount of screen time. Nothing about protecting students’ vision or about font sizes. Nothing about hearing and volume level. Nothing about posture.
That is why I am writing in support of HB 866. Because we need to educate our children with technology. But we need to do this as we do everything for our children - with care and with their safety and health as the top priority. Do I want my children to be familiar with technology? Absolutely. But do I want schools to do this at risk of my children’s vision and hearing and brain development? Absolutely not.
Please vote yes on HB 866 and thank you for asking schools to set guidelines to protect our children.
Sincerely,
Erica Mah
Parent, Hillcrest Elementary School and Catonsville MIddle School
Catonsville
Baltimore County, Maryland
.................................................. Dear Chairmen Kaiser and Carter Conway,
The
bills you are considering (HB866/SB1089) that will engage medical
professionals in setting safety guidelines in Maryland classrooms are
very important to me. I hope you will pass them.
As
a twice-tenured fifteen year veteran teacher at the elementary level
in NY, I have seen the damaging effects of screens firsthand. Having
stepped out of the classroom for 8 years to take care of my own
children, I was shocked at what I discovered when I returned to
teaching.
They are not the same children that I had once taught before
screens entered the classroom. I get through less curriculum, see less
critical thinking skills and have children who are stressed, tired and
zoned out.
And sure enough, when I inquire about it, it seems that all
roads lead to violent video games or allegedly "educational"
screen time that seems to be wasted time. I implore you to pass this
bill. I would love to help initiate similar legislation here in NY. The
time has come for the medical community to ensure that our children are
truly safe from this inundation of digital devices.
Sincerely,
Luz Rojas Kardaras
3rd Grade Teacher
Southampton Elementary School
Southampton, NY
WJZ-TV coverage of House Bill 866 Hearing Ways and Means Committee, Feb. 24, 2017
Video: Hearing testimony on House Bill 866 (With many thanks to a terrific General Assembly IT guy.)
Testimony letter for HB866: "Primary and Secondary Education - Health and Safety Guidelines and Procedures - Digital Devices"
House Ways and Means Committee Hearing
February 24, 2017
House Bill 866: SUPPORT
Chairman Kaiser, Vice Chair Turner, Members of the Committee:
Thank you for hearing this bill today. I'd also like to thank those members who have co-sponsored House Bill 866: Delegates Eric Ebersole, April Rose, Haven Shoemaker and Jimmy Tarlau.
They have joined Delegate Arentz - our hero - making a total of 26 members of the House of Delegates, representing nearly every county, to safeguard Maryland's students from well-documented, avoidable harm posed by school equipment.
The health risks associated with digital devices have been known for decades. OSHA regulated computer monitors for adults back in the 1990s. Having enjoyed a cutting-edge technology career, I have known about these issues for years. That's why I was shocked to learn that Maryland has no safety guidelines for digital device use among growing children.
Scientific evidence mounts each day underscoring the need for professional medical guidance to ensure the safety of our kids. Myopia has doubled in our country. Scientists assure us that the blue light emmitted from the screens is permanently damaging students' vision, especially the youngest ones. Neck pain, blurry vision, dry eyes, headaches, sleeplessness, obesity, anxiety, depression and addiction are all documented side effects of students who use digital devices every day.
You can review the specific studies and references on www.screensandkids.us. Or you can heed the advice of the Maryland State Medical Society, MedChi, whose members -- all of them doctors -- agree that the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene must get involved to protect our kids and establish safety and health guidelines for our classrooms.
What's key about the involvement of DHMH is that department's role within the scientific and medical community. DHMH is uniquely qualified to monitor new peer-reviewed data, trends, and evolving approaches to screen safety. They have access to the vast array of specialty practitioners whose expertise is direly needed: optometrists, ophthalmologists, ergonomic experts, environmental health experts, and psychologists.
Teachers and school administrators should heave a large sigh of relief over this bill, knowing that they are no longer left to figure this all out for themselves. They are not doctors, but they are nonetheless legally responsible for the safety of the children in their care. The unsafe use of equipment that harms our children is not a small legal consideration.
Best of all, HB866 is free of charge. Legislative services reports in its Fiscal Policy Note that there is no cost associated with the passage of this bill. Students are protected from permanent harm, teachers are protected from additional liability, and it's free.
Please pass this common sense, critical bill and protect the health of all Maryland children as they master the skills they will need to be successful.
to hear classroom digital device safety bill FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 23, 2017
(ANNAPOLIS, MARYLAND) The
House Ways and Means Committee of the Maryland General Assembly will hear
legislation on Friday, February 24th at 1:00 that directs the state
Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH) to craft safety
guidelines for the use of digital devices in Maryland public schools.
Delegate Steven Arentz (R-District 36) has sponsored the legislation, House Bill 866, "Primary and Secondary Education - Health and Safety Guidelines and Procedures - Digital Devices." The House bill has 25 co-sponsors and broad bi-partisan support.
An
identical bill has been cross-filed by Senator Steve Hershey
(R-District 36), co-sponsored by Senator James Brochin
(D-District 42) and Senator Susan Lee (D-District 16). It has been
referred to the Education, Health and Environmental Affairs Committee.
HB866 aims
to protect Maryland students from the health hazards that
medical experts have for many years associated with daily use of digital devices. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration
(OSHA) has had regulations governing the use of computers
for office workers since the 1990s, but schools have no medical oversight.
"More
and more experts are proving that there are serious risks to our kids'
health because they spend every day on a digital device," Delegate Arentz said. "Maryland
students need to get the most out of this technology, so we want medical
professionals to lead us in a safe direction."
Researchers have shown that many of the same health
issues addressed by OSHA are now facing students who use digital devices every day in
school. Retinal damage from blue light emissions, myopia, sleeplessness,
muscle and joint pain, headaches, blurred vision, obesity, anxiety and
addiction have all been associated as health risks facing students
because of daily digital device use.
The
bill has substantial support from the state's medical community. The
Maryland State Medical Society (MedChi), which represents all of
Maryland's doctors, voted to support the legislation at their most
recent meeting, according to
Gene Ransom, MedChi's Executive Director. One of the co-sponsors, Delegate Clarence Lam, is a physician who leads
Johns Hopkins University's preventative medicine residency program.
Believed to be the first of its kind, the Maryland bill also has the attention of several large health groups across the country. The
nation's leading vision health organization, Prevent Blindness,
supports the Maryland bill. Senior Vice President Jeff Todd wrote a
letter commending Maryland's "efforts to ensure children’s vision, eye health and safety is at the
forefront of any statewide effort related to childhood development."
Optometrists
from around the country have also sent support to the General Assembly
urging passage of this legislation, including J. Scott Sikes, O.D., a NC
Optometric Society Education Trustee and Dr. Geoffrey Goodfellow, OD,
FAAO, an Associate Professor at the Illinois College of Optometry and an
attending optometrist in the Pediatrics/Binocular Vision Service of the
Illinois Eye Institute.
“Protecting
eyesight when it comes to the progressive use of digital technology and
screen time addiction in young people is our number one priority” said
Justin Barrett,
CEO of Healthe, a company that creates products "to reduce exposure to harmful digital UV and High-Energy Visible (HEV) blue light emitted from such devices." "We hope the lawmakers will pass this important legislation to set
a precedent for other states in the protection of all students."
Dr. Nicholas Kardaras, PhD, LCSW-R, a nationally recognized addiction
expert and author of Glow Kids: How Screen Addiction Is Hijacking Our
Kids, writes: "I
commend the screen safety effort in Maryland and strongly encourage the General
Assembly to pass HB 866 and SB 1089 to mandate medically sound classroom
regulations."
Campaign
for a Commercial-Free Childhood (CCFC) is a national advocacy
organization with nearly 50,000 members, including 1,000 in Maryland.
The group has asked Maryland lawmakers to give HB866 their "complete
endorsement." In a letter to the Ways and Means Committee, CCFC
Executive Director, Josh Golin, writes, "It is critical that medical
professionals develop clear, research-based, age-appropriate guidelines
for the use of digital devices in schools."
Citing its 30-page research document released in August, Parents
Across America (PAA) is another national advocacy group endorsing
HB866/SB1089. PAA notes that it "has prepared extensive materials about the harmful
effects on children's academic, intellectual, emotional, physical and
social development when digital devices are misused and overused... We
applaud the Maryland lawmakers who have responded quickly and
appropriately to this critical situation."
Maryland parents have rallied to support the classroom screen safety bill as well. Leslie Weber, Co-Founder of Advocates for Baltimore County Schools
(ABCSchools), the largest public education advocacy coalition in the
county, says, "This bill is greatly needed, especially in
Baltimore County, where one of the nation's largest 1:1 digital
initiatives is underway. Children as young as 5 are in front of screens
most days -- objective guidelines from the DHMH are needed
to ensure the safety of these students." Janis
Sartucci, a member of the Parents' Coalition of Montgomery County, said,
"This bill is long overdue. Our children need to be protected from a
variety of health risks that could affect them for a lifetime. We must
get DHMH involved to be sure kids aren't hurt."
Queen
Anne's County parent, Cindy Eckard, has testified and written
extensively about the need for medical oversight of classroom digital
devices. Her Op Eds have appeared in both the Washington Post and the Baltimore Sun. During a recent radio interview Ms. Eckard told WBAL Radio reporter Robert Lang, "Of course we want our kids to master technology; we just don't want them harmed in the process."
Ms. Eckard also noted that teachers have a legal duty of care to protect students
from known hazards in the classroom. "This bill will help
teachers too, giving them statewide, uniform safety guidelines, from
medical professionals and specialists at DHMH."
Links
to medical research; recorded General Assembly testimony; a screen
safety press conference held in Annapolis with actress/comedian Paula
Poundstone, and detailed information regarding the legislation are
available on the website www.screensandkids.us or email questions to Ms. Eckard at screensandkids@gmail.com.
###
Concerned citizens should
contact the Chair, the Sponsor, and their own Delegate(s), while copying
members of the Ways and Means Committee. All phone numbers are 410-841-extension.
Delegate Arentz has done an outstanding job getting support for this critical effort to protect Maryland students. There are 24 co-sponsors from all across the state:
It will be heard in the Ways and Means Committee. A cross-filed bill in the Senate is expected. Details about the hearing(s) will be posted here, and on Twitter: @screensandkids
Please contact your legislators and the members of the Ways and Means Committee to let them know you want this bill to pass.
Classroom Screen Safety featured on BAM! Radio Network Blog, Edwords
First, do no harm Essay examines parents' expectations of care when children are at school, including protection from known screen safety health risks.
For the latest medical references regarding classroom screen hazards, please scroll down. This page also offers FURTHER DETAILS.
Sunday, January 22, 2017
Getting Ready for the MD General Assembly
If you are not already familiar with your legislative representatives, here is a link that will help you identify and contact them regarding classroom screen safety in Maryland classrooms: http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/webmga/frmmain.aspx?pid=legisrpage
As soon as the bill is filed, the bill number and sponsors will be listed here, and made known through Twitter.
The bill will travel to a House committee for a hearing. The hearing schedule will also be listed here with links to the committee members. It's important to contact your legislators to make sure that they support this effort, and that they also reach out to committee members to vote for it.
It is anticipated that Delegate Arentz's bill will be cross-filed in the Senate, so please be sure to contact your Senator(s) as well as your Delgate(s).
Thanks to all who are following on Twitter and sharing this information through your own Facebook pages. Here are this week's research links:
A new Johns Hopkins study finds digital device use linked to rise in depression among teens, especially girls. Researchers "speculate that greater exposure to known depression risk factors such as problematic cell phone use, including cyberbullying, may play a role."
Screen time has long been associated with the rise in obesity. UCLA reports that over 12.7 million children and adolescents are overweight or obese."And it’s not just a cosmetic issue: obesity increases the risk of health problemssuch as asthma, heart disease and type 2 diabetes."
The University of Maryland's Dr. Michael Brody examines some of the psychological impacts of screen time in his book, Seductive Screens:
"Is children’s media entertaining and educational, or a Trojan horse
bearing hyper-consumerism, violence, and poor health? "
Primary Care Optometry News (PCON) explains how children are more seriously impacted by the damaging blue light from screens: "An iPad held at 8 inches by a child actually has about four times the intensity than if the device were held at 16 inches by an adult ... this is a critical point to consider regarding the dangers of blue light exposure."
As mentioned last week, the University of Maryland revealed worldwide screen addiction among students six years ago. Read their report, entitled "the world UNPLUGGED," here, and then contact the directer, Susan Moeller, on Twitter @sdmoeller. Let's hope the University of Maryland will weigh in on this critical subject and support MD classroom screen safety.
Saturday, January 14, 2017
This week's update
Delegate Arentz's classroom screen safety bill has been submitted to Legislative Services; a draft should be available this coming week.
Many thanks to those who have followed the Twitter account (@screensandkids). Thank you for retweeting the research that supports the need for medically sound classroom screen safety regulations to protect Maryland students from harm. Nearly every day, new scientific evidence is uncovered that illustrates the need for clinicians to protect students who are now required to use a digital device for classwork and homework.
University of MD revealed worldwide screen addiction among students 6 years ago
The
Philip Merrill College of Journalism's International Center for Media
& the Public Agenda (ICMPA): "Students around the world repeatedly
used the term ‘addiction’ to speak about their dependence on media.
“Media is my drug; without it I was lost,” said one student from the UK.
“I am an addict. How could I survive 24 hours without it?”"
JAMA Pediatrics: Latest study on digital devices and sleeplessness "
A systematic review and meta-analysis showed strong and consistent
evidence of an association between access to or the use of devices and
reduced sleep quantity and quality, as well as increased daytime
sleepiness... An integrated approach among teachers, health care
professionals, and parents is needed to improve sleep hygiene."
Another good reason for DHMH classroom safety guidelines: volume levels on headphones and earbuds "Despite claims that kids headphones limit volume to 85 decibels (the level the World Health Organization considers “safer”), up to one-third of the kids headphones we tested exceeded that level when measured with pink noise, allowing higher volumes—sometimes much higher. " ... "Bigger kids (4 years and up) have different requirements than little ones." - The Wirecutter (New York Times affiliate)
Mont. Co. Students are asking for help with mental illness issues "Students Organize Mental Health Week at Maryland High School: Call for more awareness surrounding mental illness"
Support from Montgomery County
A mom from Montgomery County urges parents to get involved in protecting students during the General Assembly session: "What can we do to protect our kids?
• Buy blue light filters for all your child’s devices. They are
easy to affix and are relatively affordable. Be sure to look for those
that block 100% of blue light.
• Encourage kids to look away or walk away every 20 minutes or so.
• Educate your child about the risks.
• Support legislation that determines medical guidelines for safe use of digital devices in Maryland classrooms. Contact your elected officials to share your concern and support."
More pediatric research on sleep deprivation and digital devices
Remember that online classwork means online homework, sometimes late in the evening, because of after-school activities:
"Access to and night-time use of electronic media has been associated with shortened sleep duration and excess body weight (Chahal et al., 2013). Children with increasingly more electronic media devices in their bedrooms reported shorter sleep durations, and students who used electronic devices on most or all nights reported sleeping less and having more sleep difficulties."
New York Times health columnist warns about addiction: Hooked on our Smartphones "The
near-universal access to digital technology, starting at ever younger
ages, is transforming modern society in ways that can have negative
effects on physical and mental health, neurological development and
personal relationships..."
Education Week:Warning Sounded on Tech Interrupting Student Sleep "A recent meta-analysis by British researchers has brought renewed
attention to the issue, calling increased use of mobile devices at
bedtime a "major public-health concern" for children and teenagers."
Please share this information on your Facebook pages, and follow this effort on Twitter: @screensandkids.
