TBILISI (Realist English). Restrictions alone are not enough to overcome children’s dependence on gadgets — children must be offered meaningful alternatives to screen time. This was stated in an interview with Realist English by Paata Amonashvili, Doctor of Psychological Sciences and President of the International Center for Humane Pedagogy.
According to him, replacing gadgets is not an easy task and primarily requires the active involvement of an adult who understands the nature of the child.
“Children become dependent very quickly,” Amonashvili said. “The only solution we have found in our community is that restrictions are indeed necessary, but alongside restrictions we must offer children something meaningful to do instead of games, cartoons or any other activity on a gadget. What can replace it? This is a difficult question.
“First of all, it requires the participation of an adult. It can be board games played together by children and adults. Shared travel, hiking trips, sports activities outdoors together. Theatre performances, reading books together — but all of this necessarily requires active participation from an adult, and not just any adult, but one who understands the nature of the child and learns how to offer activities in a way that genuinely interests the child, not through coercion but through free choice.”
The psychologist stressed that his centre in Georgia — the Mzianeti development centre — already applies this approach by organising multi-day expeditions and creating activities such as “sky football.”
“And we see that if we succeed, and if our proposal resonates with the child’s nature, many children simply put aside their gadgets on their own and immerse themselves in the activities we offer them. That is the solution I see. But restrictions, of course, are still necessary,” Amonashvili concluded.
Digital childhood has become a reality that can no longer be ignored. According to recent studies, 86% of schoolchildren spend around four hours online every day, while one in four teenagers spends more than eight hours online daily. Experts warn that this contributes to the emergence of “clip thinking,” reduced attention spans and socialisation problems.
Medical recommendations limiting screen time to 30–40 minutes for younger children have long ceased to reflect reality.
A 2025 survey by Kaspersky involving 2,140 respondents found that the overwhelming majority of schoolchildren — 86% according to children themselves and 87% according to parents — spend an average of four hours online daily.
At the same time, only 27% of parents impose limits on screen time. The screen use of children who do not play video games is monitored less frequently than that of gamers — 21% versus 28%.
The main reason parents attempt to control screen time is the desire for children to relax in other ways (68%). Many adults also fear that gadgets may damage eyesight (63%) or lead to addiction (59%).
However, 86% of schoolchildren and 92% of university students reportedly have no restrictions on smartphone use. Only 7% of schoolchildren face limits on gadget usage time.
Specialists note that children who spend more than two hours in front of screens tend to demonstrate significantly lower levels of self-regulation development compared to their peers.
