Too much screen time is no. 1 reason for teenage sleep problems, says new survey

According to a new poll, nearly half of United States parents say their teens experience regular sleep problems, with many believing that too much screen time is to blame.

The C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll on Children’s Health at the University of Michigan questioned 1,018 parents with at least one child aged 13 to 18 years old on their child’s sleep habits, asking what they think may be causing sleep disturbances.

Nearly half of the parents (43 percent) reported that their teens have problems falling asleep at night or wake up in the night and struggle to get back to sleep.

Of these parents, around 25 percent said their teens experienced these sleep problems one to two nights per week, and 18 percent reported that their teens struggle with sleep three or more nights per week.


As to what is causing sleep disturbances, using electronic devices like social media was the number one reason given by parents, reported by 56 percent of those surveyed.

Homework and other activities causing irregular sleep schedules was the reason given by 43 percent of parents, while 31 percent say teens worrying about school is affecting their child’s shut-eye, and 23 percent say it is due to worrying about their social life.

Many parents added that they have tried a number of different strategies at home to improve sleep, including reducing caffeine intake in the evening, turning off electronics and cell phones at bedtime, and natural or herbal remedies, which were also the top recommendations given when parents consulted a doctor about their child’s sleep problems.

More than a quarter of parents (28 percent) also reported that their teens used some type of medication to remedy the problem.

“Parents whose teens continue to have frequent sleep problems, despite following recommendations for healthy sleep hygiene, may want to talk with a health care provider, particularly when considering which type of medication to try,” says poll co-director Sarah Clark, M.P.H. “Inadequate or disrupted sleep can have long-lasting health effects that go beyond moodiness and irritability for teens.”

“Sleep-deprived teens may have difficulty concentrating in school and those who drive have an increased risk of auto accidents. Inadequate sleep has also been linked to health problems ranging from obesity to depression,” added Clark. JB

source: lifestyle.inquirer.net

Facebook ramps paid leave time for new dads

SAN FRANCISCO, United States—With Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg about to become a dad, the social network boosted the amount of time fathers can take off to bond with their new babies.

Beginning with the new year, dads working full-time for Facebook anywhere in the world will have the option of taking four months’ paid leave.

All new dads working for Facebook outside the US currently get a minimum of four weeks’ paternity leave, with more time offered in locations where required by local law, according to Facebook.

Same-sex partners who are not primary caregivers for babies get the same paid leave time as dads, the social network said.

The change, effective January 1, essentially raises parental leave time for dads and non-custodial same-sex partners from four weeks to four months.

The change puts paternity leave outside the US on par with maternity leave at Facebook workplaces around the world, and extends the benefit to same-sex couples.

“In reviewing our parental leave policies, we have decided to make this change because it’s the right thing to do for our people and their families,” human resources boss Lori Matloff Goler said in a post on her Facebook page.

“This expanded benefit primarily affects new fathers and people in same-sex relationships outside the US.”

The paid time off can be taken any time during the year after a baby is born and includes adopted babies.

Maternity leave offered to Facebook employees around the world is already four months, and the benefit was available to both moms and dads in the United States.

Baby bonus

Facebook also gives a $4,000 bonus for parents to help meet the needs of new babies.

Zuckerberg, who heads the company, announced last week that he will take two months’ paternity leave after his wife gives birth to their first child.


“This is a very personal decision, and I’ve decided to take two months of paternity leave when our daughter arrives,” Zuckerberg said in a post on his Facebook page.

“Studies show that when working parents take time to be with their newborns, outcomes are better for the children and families.”

California-based Facebook gives US employees the option of taking as long as four months paid maternity or paternity leave, letting them divide the time as they wish over the course of a year.

Zuckerberg and his doctor wife, Priscilla, revealed in July that they were expecting their first child, a girl, after a series of miscarriages.

Leading streaming music service Spotify last week announced that all full-time employees will have the option to take as long as six months’ parental leave at full pay during the first three years after having children.

Internet giants ramping leave time for parents could put pressure on other firms to do the same to attract talent in a competitive industry.

source: lifestyle.inquirer.net

Dedicated principal adds over 800 parents on WeChat

CHINA — Zhou Peili, a primary school principal in Ningbo, Zhejiang province has added almost every student’s parents on WeChat, reported chinanews.com last Monday.

Zhou found that WeChat could increase the connection and interaction between him and the children’s parents to help students improve.

Once, he noticed that a student who hardly followed his teacher’s instructions to complete his homework had parents who were not around due to work.

Zhou concluded that the student’s misbehavior was due to a lack of attention from his parents. He soon added the student’s mother on WeChat and informed her of the progress her child made regularly.

He also told the student his mother will know about his progress to encourage him to work harder and better. A few months later, the student showed a big improvement in his academic work and life.

Now, Zhou adds all the parents and shares the students’ progress on his WeChat to all the parents. He also shares updated education theories and school events that help parents to stay informed about their children’s education.

source: newsinfo.inquirer.net

Mom creates phone-locking app to force kids to return parent’s calls

MANILA, Philippines—Is this an invasion of the kids’ privacy or a method of strict but good parenting?

A mother in the United States has developed a mobile application (app) that guarantees kids will answer their parents’ texts and calls. The app was launched on Saturday.

Ignore No More, an app developed by Sharon Standifird from Texas, enables parents to lock the phones of their children if they think they are ignoring their texts and calls.

Standifird revealed in a televised interview that the parents, through this app, can take away texting, calling, gaming, and internet-surfing from their kids.

In order to use the app, it must be installed first to the phones of both the parents and their children. Then, once installed, parents can open the app on their smartphone, and click the name of their child. Next, they will have to enter the unlock code twice and then click to lock their child’s phone.

The child’s phone will be locked and with a single tap, and a list of contacts approved by the parent will appear. The child should then call someone from the contact list in order to get the password that will unlock the phone.

The app will enable kids to call 911 and once installed, Ignore No More cannot be disabled.

Ignore No More is currently available for $1.99 to US citizens and will only operate on Android-supported phones. A version for iPhone is underway.

source: technology.inquirer.net

Parents give Clark County schools high ratings in survey

Parents, students and staff don’t always see eye to eye on school issues, according to a Clark County School District survey released this week.

For example, while 96 percent of parents surveyed said they agreed or strongly agreed that their school was clean, only 67 percent of students and 86 percent of staff said the same.

Each year, the School District conducts parent, staff and student surveys to determine how well the district is performing outside of test scores and graduation rates. This year, a record number responded.

Parents rated the School District the highest among the three surveyed groups. Nearly 19,000 parents took the survey, given online from March 1 to April 27.

In most categories — from how well the district teaches reading, writing and math to academic expectations — parents gave the School District above a 90 percent approval rating.

The only two categories where parents rated the district lower than 90 percent was in bus transportation communication and shared decision-making.

Parents also submitted fewer public complaint forms: just 91, down from a high of 178 from a decade ago.

Students were the most critical of the School District, according to the survey. Nearly 129,000 students out of about 309,000 students in the School District responded to the survey.

Students were critical of the district when it came to healthy, good-tasting cafeteria food, giving the district a 48 percent approval rating. Students also said they didn’t think they received fair treatment from the district, giving the district a 67 percent rating.

About three-quarters of students said they would recommend their school to a friend. About 81 percent and 93 percent of staff and parents, respectively, said they would recommend their school to a friend.

Although 93 percent of parents said their children were enthusiastic about learning, only 78 percent of students and 64 percent of staff agreed.

Staff members were critical of how well students were learning skills such as creativity, leadership and organizational skills, rating the district in the 70th percentile. Staff also rated the district low on professional development opportunities and accessibility to school zone managers.

About 9,900 staff members — teachers, support staff and administrators — responded to the survey.

The staff disagreed with parents and students when it came to whether their school was teaching students about becoming a responsible citizen. Although parents and students rated the district 95 percent and 87 percent, respectively, the staff rated the district a 77 percent.

Staff members were the most critical of the district when it came to shared decision-making. Just 71 percent of staff said they felt they were included in the district’s decision-making process when it came to school changes.

“We need to be more collaborative so that we can work on the things that are important to kids,” said Vikki Courtney, vice president of the local teachers union.

“This will be a focus area for us,” Clark County Schools Superintendent Dwight Jones said. “We want to ensure that teachers’ voices are heard.”

Ensuring collaboration will be key as the district rolls out new reforms, such as a growth model to measure student achievement as well as a more rigorous curriculum. Some grants — such as such as the district’s $40 million Race to the Top application — require support from the teachers union.

Courtney said the report was indicative of what she saw as low teacher morale across the district. The School District is demanding more of teachers while trying to negotiate contract concessions, she said.

“I think what this indicates is we need more resources, time and support from the district to help teachers do their jobs,” Courtney said.

School Board member Erin Cranor said she was concerned about how the district was supporting its teachers through all the reforms that have been instituted. It’s a difficult time across the nation to be a teacher, Cranor said.

“Teachers feel like they’re just being barraged (by the changes),” she said.

source: lasvegassun.com