Abstract :
[en] The controversy about the use of screens places parents and educators in a sensitive situation on the question of whether we should promote or oppose the use of screens or even forbid using them. Several opponents and proponents are trying to define and quantify the right and wrong uses of screens, to place screen use in an adapted time and space or simply to make screen-gazing less exclusive for the sake of other activities, which are deemed healthier (sports, arts…). Is there a balanced use of digital technology? What role should schools have? After describing this new hyperconnected form of socialization, focus is shifted to schools and the integration of educational digital technology. The concept of a digital culture is examined to conclude by opening a discussion on the balanced and ecological use of this technology. Controversies about the exposure to screens put parents and educational professionals in a sensitive situation with regard to a single question. Should we foster the use in everyday life of screens of all sorts-whether TV, smartphones, tablets or computers, but in particular those connected to the Internet-or, on the contrary, fight against screen exposure or even forbid screens? Several stakeholders (manufacturers, researchers, teachers, parents, institutions), pro and con, are trying to define the standards for good and bad uses of screens, to quantify screen exposure and limit it to an adapted space and time, or simply to keep screen time from excluding other activities (deemed healthier: sports, outings, artistic activities, etc.). What would be a balanced use of digital technology? What role, if any, should schools (herein, a generic term referring to educational institutions from the primary level up to the university) play? Pupils and students are well equipped with smartphones, and probably use digital technology intensively. After describing the context of this new, hyperconnected form of socialization, this article will focus on digital technology in schools. We shall then dwell on the concept of a "digital culture" and, in conclusion, open the discussion to questions about a balanced and ecological use of digital technology.
