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Research · Screens

Why “screen time” is the wrong number to worry about

What changes a toddler's language growth isn't the minutes — it's whether an adult is talking during them. #earlychildhood #languagedev

Dr Naledi Mokoena✓ Developmental psych · PhD ·

The claim

Background television is associated with fewer adult words directed at toddlers.

Associative claim. Evidence strength is chosen by the person who posts, based on the sources they read. Never by AI.

The research behind this

3 sources, 3 peer reviewed. Evidence rated moderate.

  • What the research found, and what it doesn’t say
  • The limitations, and what nobody knows yet
  • Every source, with a link to the original paper

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Discussion · 3

Sipho Dlamini

So is it fine to have the TV on if I am talking to them?

Dr Naledi Mokoena

The studies can’t answer that directly — they measured adult talk dropping when a TV was audible. Talking more is the part with evidence behind it.

J. Pillay

Worth noting the effect sizes in the meta-analysis are small. Good framing though.

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Cited by

  1. Referenced by · I tried “TV time into talk time” with my Grade 1s, Mrs Hartley · 21 September 2026
  2. Discussed by · The screen-time number parents ask me for — and why I’ve stopped giving one, Marius de Villiers · 21 September 2026

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A reference to Dr Naledi Mokoena (@naledimokoena) for this research, as each style cites an online post. A paper in the evidence has its own “Cite this paper”.

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APA 7th

In-text

Reference list

Mokoena, N. [@naledimokoena]. (2026, September 20). Why “screen time” is the wrong number to worry about [Image]. CIT.ED. https://cit.education/p/d3292b41-3f75-4737-bf6d-a94a8662058d

Harvard

In-text

Reference list

Mokoena, N. [@naledimokoena] (2026) ‘Why “screen time” is the wrong number to worry about’ [CIT.ED] 20 September. Available at: https://cit.education/p/d3292b41-3f75-4737-bf6d-a94a8662058d (Accessed: 3 November 2026).

MLA 9th

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Add the page number inside the brackets if you quote, e.g. (Smith 12).

Reference list

Mokoena, Naledi [@naledimokoena]. “Why “screen time” is the wrong number to worry about.” CIT.ED, 20 Sept. 2026, cit.education/p/d3292b41-3f75-4737-bf6d-a94a8662058d.

Chicago (author-date)

In-text

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Mokoena, Naledi (@naledimokoena). 2026. “Why “screen time” is the wrong number to worry about.” CIT.ED image, September 20, 2026. https://cit.education/p/d3292b41-3f75-4737-bf6d-a94a8662058d.

Vancouver

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Vancouver numbers sources in the order you first cite them. Replace 1 with this source’s number.

Reference list

Mokoena N. Why “screen time” is the wrong number to worry about [image on the Internet]. CIT.ED; 2026 Sep 20 [cited 2026 Nov 3]. Available from: https://cit.education/p/d3292b41-3f75-4737-bf6d-a94a8662058d

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