Apple’s new iOS Screen Time feature allows users to track phone usage and set limits, which leads to an increase in awareness and improved productivity among students.
Screen Time allows Apple users to see their phone usage based on productivity, social networking, entertainment, games and creativity.
The feature also provides users with multiple ways to control their phone usage such as Downtime and App Limits, both of which set restrictions on apps and on the phone itself.
“I do try to cut back because it is kind of embarrassing,” junior Gillian Dumont said. “I’ve spent six hours on my phone which is kind of excessive. I set limits for myself when I’m doing my homework so that I do not use my phone too much and I get my work done.”
Students and staff members both reported attempts to cut down on screen time after seeing their weekly phone usage report.
“Once I saw how much screen time I was [using], which ended up being nine and a half hours, I am now starting to try to use less because I don’t want to spend my whole life on my phone,” safety and security assistant Renee Royle said.
Teens usually take advantage of winter break to relax, and with school out of the picture, junior Alyson Rees said her weekly report went up by 20 percent.
“My phone [usage] definitely increased because I had more free time to do whatever I wanted and didn’t have to worry about homework or going to school for seven hours a day where I couldn’t use my phone,” Rees said. “I also noticed that my screen time […] increased by multiple hours which is definitely not good. [My screen time] has definitely increased more over break.”
iOS Screen Time promotes awareness and productivity. Students who have limited time after school to finish homework could use the feature to control the time they spend on their phone and stay focused, which sophomore Patrick Smith said he does.
“Usually, I look at how much [time] I’ve [spent on my phone] over the past week and if it’s more than what I want, then I’ll check to see how much [time I spent] was used for education and how much was used for entertainment,” Smith said. “Screen Time limits are useful especially when you want to keep on track.”
2019-01-23