A few decades ago, childhood in Bangladesh was filled with outdoor games, songs with grandparents, and bedtime stories. Today, a very different picture is emerging: toddlers holding smartphones before they can even string full sentences together, cartoons running on loop during mealtimes, and digital games replacing street play. The screen has become a new caregiver – soothing, distracting, entertaining.
But behind this convenience, a quieter problem has begun to unfold: how is all this screen time shaping the way children learn to speak?
This was the central question of my research, and the answer is not as simple as “screens are bad.” What I found was both reassuring and alarming: not all screen time is equal, and the way children use screens matters just as much as how long they use them.
Let me explain by telling you about two children I met.
Five-year-old Samir (Pseudo-name) spends about two hours a day on a tablet. But his time is filled with video calls to his cousins in Sylhet, an app that teaches him Bangla letters through songs, and games where he has to name animals. He chats, he repeats words, he interacts. His speech is clear and confident.
Then there is four-year-old Anika. To keep her calm while her mother manages the household, Anika often watches cartoons on a phone. She sits quietly for hours, absorbed in the bright colours and sounds. But when she speaks, her words are often mumbled and difficult to understand. She struggles to form the sounds other children her age have already mastered.
Samir is engaging in interactive screen time. Anika is stuck in passive screen time. And that single difference changes everything.
My study involved 26 children here in Bangladesh. Half were developing as expected, and half faced challenges like autism or speech delays. The gap between the two groups was stark, and screen time played a huge role.
The typical children, like Samir, averaged around two hours of screen time a day. About half of that was interactive. Their parents had rules. Their days were mixed with play, family time, and learning.
The children with developmental challenges averaged nearly four and a half hours a day. For some, it was even more. And most alarmingly, over 70% of that time was passive – just watching, not participating. Their screens were often used as a digital pacifier, a way to manage behavior because their parents were exhausted and had little support.
The result? The speech gap between the two groups was heartbreaking. While over half of the typical children had excellent, clear speech, not a single child in the atypical group scored that high. In fact, most of their speech was difficult for a stranger to understand.
Why does passive screen time have this effect? The answer is – language is not a spectator sport.
A child learns to speak by testing their voice. They babble, and a parent babbles back. They say a word incorrectly, and a grandparent gently corrects them. It’s a dance of listening and responding. Passive screen time stops that dance. The cartoon character doesn’t pause for an answer. The YouTube video doesn’t ask for an opinion. The child is silent, and in that silence, their chance to practice disappears.
The parents I spoke to knew they were in a difficult spot. One mother told me, “I know I shouldn’t give him the phone, but it’s the only way I can get him to eat.” Another said, “After a long day, it’s the only thing that calms her down.” Their intentions were never harmful. They were doing their best in a world where digital devices are the new normal.
So, what’s the way forward? We don’t need to ban screens. That’s neither practical nor helpful. Instead, we need to be wiser about how we use them.
Lessons for Parents and Caregivers
The findings of this study are not meant to alarm you, but to empower you. You don’t need to ban screens entirely – that’s an unrealistic battle in today’s world. Instead, the goal is to become a conscious “digital dietitian” for your child, choosing the right kind of screen nutrition. Here is a detailed guide on what that looks like:
1. Shift Your Focus from Quantity to Quality.
It’s not just about how long, but about what they are doing on the screen.
- Prioritize Interactive Content: Actively seek out apps and games that require your child to participate. Good options include:
- Video Calls: This is the gold standard. Encourage family members to ask your child questions and wait for their response.
- Educational Apps: Choose ones that require tapping, dragging, speaking, or answering questions (e.g., “Touch the red circle,” “Repeat this word”).
- Sing-Along Videos: Don’t just watch them; sing along together. Encourage your child to mimic the actions and sounds.
- Limit Passive Consumption: Be mindful of long, uninterrupted stretches of watching cartoons or YouTube videos. This is the type of screen time most strongly linked to speech delays.
2. Become a “Co-Player,” Not a Spectator.
Your presence can transform passive time into interactive time.
- Watch Together: Sit with your child while they watch. Ask simple questions about what’s happening on screen: “What colour is that car?” “What do you think he will do next?” “Can you make that animal sound?”
- Make it a Conversation: Provide the feedback that the screen cannot. Praise them when they get something right. Repeat and expand on what they say. If they say “dog,” you say, “Yes, a big, brown dog!”
- Connect it to the Real World: If they see a ball on screen, pause and go find a real ball. This helps bridge the digital world with the physical one, building their understanding.
3. Create Clear and Consistent Boundaries.
Structure helps children feel secure and ensures a healthy balance.
- Set Time Limits: Be specific. “You can watch one episode of this show” or “We can play this game for 15 minutes.” Use a timer if it helps.
- Designate Screen-Free Zones and Times: The most important are:
- Mealtimes: Make meals a time for family conversation. This is a critical opportunity for language practice.
- Bedtimes: Avoid screens for at least an hour before bed to ensure better sleep, which is crucial for development.
- The Car: Use travel time for talking, singing, or looking out the window instead of handing over a phone.
4. Protect and Prioritize Real-World Interactions.
Never let a screen replace the fundamental building blocks of language.
- Read Physical Books Daily: This is non-negotiable. Reading together builds vocabulary, teaches sentence structure, and fosters a love for language that no app can match.
- Encourage Unstructured Play: Time spent playing with blocks, dolls, or in the mud is not “wasted” time. It’s where creativity and problem-solving—key components of communication—are developed.
- Have Conversations: Talk to your child throughout the day. Describe what you’re doing while cooking, point out things you see on a walk, and listen to their stories, no matter how rambling.
5. Be Especially Mindful If Your Child Has Developmental Challenges.
For parents of atypical children, the screen can feel like a necessary tool for managing behaviour. Please know that you are doing your best. The goal here is gentle redirection.
- Use Screens as a Reward, Not a Default: Instead of offering the screen first, try to engage them in an activity. Use the promise of a short, high-quality video as a reward afterward.
- Choose Content Strategically: If they love watching something on repeat, use it to your advantage. Pause the video and ask, “What did he say?” Mimic the characters together.
- Seek Support: Talk to your child’s speech therapist about how to integrate screen time into their therapy goals. They can recommend specific apps and strategies.
Conclusion
As I reflect on this study, I keep coming back to the image of a child sitting quietly before a glowing screen. Silence may look peaceful, but in that silence, words are being lost.
Children learn to speak not just by listening, but by trying, failing, repeating, and being understood. Screens can either rob them of that practice or provide new ways to engage, depending on how we guide them.
For parents and grandparents, the question is not whether to allow screen time, but: Is this helping my child find their voice, or taking it away?
The answer to that question can shape not only a child’s speech, but their confidence, relationships, and future.
