Parents are more concerned than ever about their kids’ social media habits, worried about everything from oversharing and cyberbullying to anxiety, depression, sleep and study time.
Recent surveys of young people show that parents’ concerns may be justified: More than half of U.S. teens spend at least four hours a day on these apps. Girls, who are particularly vulnerable, spend an average of nearly an hour more on them per day than boys. Many parents are searching for support.
Perhaps more than anyone, Carla Engelbrecht and Devorah Heitner are qualified to offer it. They’ve spent years puzzling over how families can help understand media from the inside out, and how schools both help and hurt kids’ ability to cope.
Engelbrecht is a longtime children’s media developer. A veteran of Sesame Workshop and PBS Kids Interactive, she spent seven years at Netflix, most recently as its director of product innovation. Engelbrecht was one of the minds behind the network’s Black Mirror “Bandersnatch” episode in 2018, which allowed viewers to choose among five possible endings.