We are often told that we should be on our screens less. Overuse of screens can lead to poor sleep, neck and back pain, and eye strain and issues with focus, sleep, and more.[1][2][3] This narrative is often directed at personal screen use. It is common to get advice about how to go on social media less,[4] or how disincentivize yourself from looking at your screen at night,[5] or to stop looking at emails once you’re home.[6] Yet, we rarely get advice about how to go on screens less in our educational or professional roles. Students are often required to spend hours a day on their computers writing papers, taking notes, or watching lectures. Professionals may have hours of video meetings, emails to respond to, or projects to work on. All of this adds up to hours a day on screens.[7] How can we limit our screen time in professional settings, when we are required to use them?
As a student or a professional, it is often not possible to stop doing tasks that are connected to screens. However, it is possible to shift tasks off of a screen, so that they may be completed without contributing to the negative impacts of screen overuse. Below we’ve identified successful approaches to reducing the impact of screen time during meetings, lectures, and when completing essays, projects, and exams.
Meetings
More now than ever we are holding meetings virtually. Throughout the pandemic this was a necessity, now it has become a habit. There are certainly benefits that come with online meetings, such as meeting with people who work remotely, or who are in a different location. However, there are times when holding meetings online is not necessary. Additionally, there is a tendency to be on screens while on meetings — to take notes or share content, for example. This also is often habitual and not necessary for the meeting.
- Before scheduling a meeting: Does visual material need to be shared during the meeting? If not, try scheduling a phone call meeting instead of video. No cameras can mean less zoom fatigue.[8]
- If the team members that are meeting are all in the same place (and it’s a nice day), consider going for a walking meeting instead of meeting inside. This will discourage laptop usage during the meeting, and the fresh air and movement is a bonus.[9]
Classes and Lectures
Similar to meetings, classes shifted online during the pandemic, and some have stayed fully or partially online. Now there are many aspects of classes and lectures that require screens. Some of these are optional, though, and there are ways to reduce screen time while in lectures.
- If the class is open to students, consider going in person instead of watching recorded or zoom lectures.[10][11]
- If viewing a lot of record lectures when taking an online course is a necessity, consider taking a break from watching once in a while. Try listening to the recording and taking notes rather than watching the video, if it doesn’t have important visual information.
- Try taking notes by hand on paper (or in a reusable notebook) instead of typing them — not only will this reduce screen time, but there are also studies that have found that taking notes by hand increases retention of the content better than typing.[12]
Reading Material
Buying reading material can quickly become very expensive, not to mention all of that paper often feels like a waste. Students have largely shifted to reading books, textbooks, and papers online — but this adds to the amount of hours we spend looking at our laptops. There are alternatives that can help strike a “happy medium” between paper and screen.
- If a class has books assigned, consider reading physical copies instead of ebooks.[13]
- If a class has assigned readings, try printing some of them to read on paper. Alternatively, consider just printing off readings that require more attention—like for a paper or project.
- An alternative to reading on paper is listening. Try audiobooks for books or text-to-speech for readings. This is also a great option for auditory learners.
Essays, Projects, and Exams
The ease of doing work on platforms like google docs and microsoft word can pull us towards working on a screen all the time. If the goal is to reduce screen usage though, here are some ways to work or study offline.
- Consider starting a draft of an essay or project on paper instead of on a computer. If environmental impact is important to you, think about looking into a reusable notebook as an alternative to paper.
- Alternatively, try diction (speech-to-text) to start an essay or project. This can be done in a chrome browser when using google docs, or on apple products in the notes app.
- While researching, consider looking for podcasts that are relevant to the essay or project topic instead of reading online the entire time.
- When studying for an exam, try printing off typed notes (if they’ve previously were typed) and annotating, underlining, and highlighting on paper.[14]
- If making study sheets for an exam, try doing this on paper instead of online.[15] Mind mapping is one of my favourite ways to study, which I find is best done on paper.
Taking Breaks
- When taking a break from work (like a lunch break or a study break) try to avoid going on screens more. Eating lunch away from the work desk, or going for a walk as a study break can help to avoid spending a break looking at another screen.
- The Pomodoro Technique is great for scheduling breaks, which can encourage more focused work periods and screen-free down time.[16]
- Listening to music or a podcast as a break is a great alternative to a video or scrolling on an app.
Would you benefit from shifting your studying and work off your screen? Using screens more mindfully can hopefully lead to feeling more energised at work. We’ve developed guiding questions to help inform your usage:
- What are the areas where I spend the most time on screens? Is all this time necessary and productive, or can I move this work off of my screen in some way?
- What does working on a screen bring to my work, and in what ways does it hinder my performance?
We’d love to hear from you — what do you do when you get distracted on your screen? Do you turn your tech off for a break, or do you switch to another task on your screen (like social media or emails)?
References
[1] Lissak, Gadi. “Adverse Physiological and Psychological Effects of Screen Time on Children and Adolescents: Literature Review and Case Study.” Environmental Research, vol. 164, 2018, pp. 149–157., https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2018.01.015.
[2] Torsheim, Torbjørn, et al. “Screen-Based Activities and Physical Complaints among Adolescents from the Nordic Countries.” BMC Public Health, vol. 10, no. 1, 2010, https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-10-324.
[3] Yan, Zheng, et al. “Computer Vision Syndrome: A Widely Spreading but Largely Unknown Epidemic among Computer Users.” Computers in Human Behavior, vol. 24, no. 5, 2008, pp. 2026–2042., https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2007.09.004.
[4] Huss, Michael James. “How to Unfriend Negative Social Media Habits before You Get to College.” USF Admissions, University of South Florida, 10 June 2019, https://admissions.usf.edu/blog/how-to-unfriend-negative-social-media-habits-before-you-get-to-college.
[5] “How Screen Time May Cause Insomnia in Teens.” Sleep Foundation, Sleep Foundation, 13 May 2022, https://www.sleepfoundation.org/teens-and-sleep/screen-time-and-insomnia-for-teens.
[6] “Mere Expectation of Checking Work Email after Hours Harms Health of Workers and Families.” ScienceDaily, Virginia Tech, 10 Aug. 2018, https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/08/180810091553.htm.
[7] “Average Adult Will Spend 34 Years of Their Life Looking at Screens, Poll Claims.” The Independent, Independent Digital News and Media, 11 May 2020, https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/fashion/news/screen-time-average-lifetime-years-phone-laptop-tv-a9508751.html.
[8] University, Stanford. “Four Causes for ‘Zoom Fatigue’ and Their Solutions.” Stanford News, Stanford University, 1 Mar. 2021, https://news.stanford.edu/2021/02/23/four-causes-zoom-fatigue-solutions/.
[9] “How to Do Walking Meetings Right.” Harvard Business Review, Harvard University, 27 Sept. 2017, https://hbr.org/2015/08/how-to-do-walking-meetings-right.
[10] Alpert, William T., et al. “A Randomized Assessment of Online Learning.” American Economic Review, vol. 106, no. 5, 2016, pp. 378–382., https://doi.org/10.1257/aer.p20161057.
[11] Mueller, Pam A., and Daniel M. Oppenheimer. “The Pen Is Mightier than the Keyboard.” Psychological Science, vol. 25, no. 6, 2014, pp. 1159–1168., https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797614524581.
[12] Jabr, Ferris. “The Reading Brain in the Digital Age: The Science of Paper versus Screens.” Scientific American, Scientific American, 11 Apr. 2013, https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/reading-paper-screens/.
[13] Libretexts. “1.5: Annotation Is a System for Remembering What You Read.” Humanities LibreTexts, Libretexts, 4 Aug. 2020, https://human.libretexts.org/Courses/Housatonic_Community_College/ENG101/ENG_101_OER/1%
3A_Reading_in_College/1.5%3A_Annotation_is_a_system_for_remembering_what_you_read.
[14] “Taking Notes.” Chapman Learning Commons, University of British Columbia, 5 July 2022, https://learningcommons.ubc.ca/student-toolkits/taking-notes/?login%3Flogin.
[15] “The Pomodoro Technique: Study More Efficiently, Take More Breaks.” Chapman Learning Commons, University of British Columbia, 20 Apr. 2022, https://learningcommons.ubc.ca/the-pomodoro-technique-study-more-efficiently-take-more-breaks/.
Written By: Eden Solarik
Edited By: Alex Kuskowski, Lucas Wright, & Rie Namba
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