Brittany Terry | Public Relations
Project Summary
Through this 21-day course, families learn the basics of media literacy and receive assistance in establishing healthy screen time habits in their home. Each day, participants have a page of reading, a daily activity to complete, and journal prompts to reflect on their experience. The course contains five units: Social Media Agenda, Habits, Fill the Screen Time Void, Suggested Guidelines, and Character Building.
Social Media Agenda:
3 days in this course are dedicated to teaching readers the motives and goals of social media companies. Readers also learn about algorithms and notifications. Instructions for proper device and social media settings are provided so users can prevent falling captive to addictive algorithms.
Habits:
Digital Balance is all about breaking, building and then learning how to maintain healthy screen time habits. There are 4 days in this course that teach readers the science of habits and provide tools for success as they work on their own habits.
Fill the Screen Time Void:
Fill the Screen Time Void is my favorite unit. Readers discover ways to receive satisfaction and gratification through means that don’t involve screen time. 5 days in this course provide opportunities for readers to practice filling their screen time void by reading, learning, productivity service, and learning.
Guidelines:
For the best success in healthy screen time habits, 4 days in this course cover suggested guidelines for families to implement in their home. Not using screens the first and last hour of their day, no devices in bedrooms, phone etiquette, and everyone participating are the 4 guidelines each family should follow.
Day thirteen introduces one guideline that makes this course unique to most household rules. Repeatedly in my research I found that the parents social media usage and behaviors will pass directly onto their children. For the best success, everyone is encouraged and expected to follow each guideline and to be good examples to their family members.
Character Building:
Lastly, the book teachers the importance of commitment, self-discipline, and relationship connections over 3 days in course. Many daily activities throughout the course focus on creating meaningful quality time as a family, free from media distractions.
Evaluation
Twenty participants from five families took this course, eighteen of them were old enough to complete the pre and post evaluations. The average score on the pre-evaluation was 67% and the average score of the post evaluation was 94%. These results solidified my future goals for this course and how impactful all 77 hours spent on this project were. Not only did I further develop research, writing, and design skills, but I was also able to create something that has the potential to help many families.
Coming Soon…
I have big dreams for this course! Based on the high level of interest I’ve received, I will pursue publishing this book and start a business to help many more individuals and families create healthy screen time habits. For that reason, the entire book will not be on this blog but will hopefully be available for purchase in the coming months. For any partnership or purchasing inquires please contact me at brittanyannterry@gmail.com.