Norman Phillips Schools hosts Screenagers panel to guide parents on new state cell‑phone policy

Norman Phillips Schools convened an evening workshop for parents to explain a recently adopted state law that requires school districts to adopt cell‑phone policies and to provide practical guidance on children’s screen use.

The session began with the school administrator introducing a Screenagers film and a panel of local mental‑health clinicians led by Brianna Norman of Central Oklahoma Mental Health. Panelists included Christina Schwartz, LCSW, the children's clinical director at the Community Mental Health Center; Alex Porter, LPC, an adult clinical director with prior children’s unit experience; and Katie Hawkins, a psychiatric mental‑health nurse practitioner.

The panel emphasized that multitasking reduces learning and recommended frequent, scheduled breaks for students. “I think that…there's no such thing as multitasking,” a panelist said, arguing that switching among tasks reduces accuracy and retention and advising parents and teachers to build short, predictable breaks into learning routines. Several clinicians recommended, for some children, a roughly equal ratio of focused work to active break time (for example, 10 minutes of instruction followed by 10 minutes of play or movement).

Speakers also warned about social media’s effects on self‑image and eating disorders. One clinician summarized the concern this way: “Between 2000 and 2018, the rates of eating disorders in the United States among teenagers doubled,” and said social‑media feedback loops and edited images can push vulnerable youth toward harmful behaviors. The panel urged parents to watch for warning signs, open lines of communication, and intervene early if a child shows changes in appetite, mood, or behavior.

Panelists acknowledged some positive aspects of technology—such as increased help‑seeking using apps and hotlines—but stressed that parents should not rely on technology alone. They recommended parents model limits, use device controls (such as built‑in screen‑time tools or third‑party tracking apps), and involve children in creating household rules so limits feel consistent rather than arbitrary.

On empathy and social skills, clinicians said heavy screen reliance can limit children’s practice with social cues and conflict resolution. They recommended pairing screen time with face‑to‑face interaction to build social competence and emphasized predictable transitions from school to home to reduce overstimulation.

For practical guidance, the panel pointed parents to pediatric frameworks on screen time, including the American Academy of Pediatrics’ guidance partners sometimes summarize as the '5 C’s' (child, content, calm, crowding out and communication), and to a screen‑time chart on the resource table from the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

The school closed the session with next steps: take the handouts provided, sign up for a follow‑up survey, and expect additional presentations on cybersecurity from local university partners. The moderator said panelists would be available briefly for questions and encouraged parents to contact school staff for further support.

What organizers said next: the moderator reiterated the school’s theme for the year—"powering down to power up"—and invited attendees to use the provided resources and the district’s follow‑up survey to help shape future guidance and programming.