Parents should take up a “structured and supervised” schedule to monitor their children’s screen time, a public forum zooming in on child behaviour issues heard on Tuesday.

Kacee Simons, a psychologist who said she felt “strongly about the topic”, added: “Prolonged screen time is very problematic and it’s 100 per cent affecting the development of your child’s brain.”

Dr Simons, who runs Metanoia Psychological Services, featured among four panellists at the forum at Victor Scott Primary School, with Nicholas Darcueil, a founder of Dignity House; Lisa Swan, assistant director for student services at the Department of Education; and Jahni Smith, an educational therapist at CedarBridge Academy

They considered whether prolonged screen time could harm children, as well as what constituted excessive screen use and practical alternatives for parents at home.

Dr Simons said that, based on her research, children up to 18 months should only be exposed to video calls with a loved one.

Two to five-year-olds should have supervised time of one hour daily, watching educational content.

She said for eight to ten-year-olds, the time could be increased with strict parental guidance, adding that at that age “things tend to go wrong” in terms of screen exposure.

Dr Simons said research has shown that children scrolling on a screen, such as social media apps like TikTok, struggled with their attention spans.

“Your focus goes from a 30-second reel to the next and your mind has to switch with that,” she added.

Dr Simons said children also dealt with challenges in social and emotional control over relating with others.

“Children aren’t interacting with people any more,” she said, recalling seeing five teenagers sitting together but focused on the devices in their hands.

Ms Swan told the gathering she supported structured screen time for children, noting that youngsters who thrive and “do better in jobs” possess skills based on social interactions.

Ms Swan said: “All kinds of fun activities are available — the more you do, it bonds your family together and it gets them away from that screen.”

She highlighted time spent on puzzles, reading and playing games.

Mr Smith admitted that limiting children’s screen exposure “will take some sacrifice” from parents but urged them to monitor the time and the content viewed on devices.

“Just make sure it is not the constant scrolling,” he said. “Make sure it’s beneficial to them in the long run.”

Mr Darcueil played devil’s advocate, saying a parent with three young children might not have the funds for a caregiver to keep them occupied.

He questioned how a parent would navigate household duties if their children were not engaged in devices.

Several attendees said managing their children’s screen time would prove challenging.

One mother of five, who said her eldest child attended middle school, would use her phone to complete his homework. She said “teachers are promoting the screen time”.

“When they get into high school, how are they going to do their research?”

The parent said: “We’re in a world where both parents have to work. By the time we come home, it is so much easier for us to let them use the screen time to complete their homework so that they can get a bed by a certain time.

“The school needs to promote more to help the parents, because the school and teachers deal with the children more during the day than the parents do.”

Last month, Tinée Furbert, the Minister of Youth, Social Development and Seniors, highlighted the risks posed for young people by unchecked internet use.

She told the House of Assembly that about two-thirds of senior school students who attended a youth development conference reported spending more than five hours a day on screens.

Almost four-fifths of that time was spent on social media, the pupils said, and most added that parents or guardians did not monitor their screen activity.