Catalan president committed to fighting 'excessive' screen use in schools

Catalan President Salvador Illa has called for a return to textbooks and launching "specific programs" to strengthen reading instruction and other fundamental skills, including vocabulary, writing and speaking, as a way to "combat excessive screen use." 

Speaking at an event at Palu Centelles, Illa also promoted school libraries as central spaces in education and reiterated that students up to age 15 will be barred from using artificial intelligence in the classroom. 

He also announced that an interdepartmental commission will finalize 60 additional measures on September 28 and pledged to pursue legislation that would make the recommendations "binding and lasting."

The event came after the Catalan Department of Health released an updated Digital Health Guide on Tuesday. The guide examines the risks of screen use and new technologies, drawing on 700 international scientific studies.

Illa said child protection measures must keep pace with the digital world. "What we do not allow in real life, we must not allow in the digital world either," he said. 

He called the medical research "clear and conclusive," saying excessive device use shortens attention spans, makes it harder for students to concentrate in class and causes "serious" health effects. 

"Serious, not minor," he said, adding that doctors, teachers and parents see those effects every day.

Illa pledged that the Catalan government will do "whatever is necessary" to protect children from excessive screen use, but said the effort must involve families, educators, institutions, businesses and organizations. 

"Bringing back the book"

Illa outlined several steps the government plans to take to curb excessive technology use.

"We are not an anti-technology government, but technology must be managed and used well," he said. He reaffirmed the ban on cellphones in compulsory education and the prohibition on AI use in schools for students.

He also called for a return to reading and for making books "an everyday object," saying that responsibility falls on adults and that families must play a central role in changing habits.

Along these lines, the government will launch programs to "improve reading instruction" in schools and restore libraries as central hubs, Illa said. 

Vocabulary, writing and speaking skills will also be strengthened. He backed bringing back textbooks as a key classroom resource, though he acknowledged the issue will have to be settled within the education pact the government has convened. 

"Reading an excerpt from a book teaches far more than a fifteen-second video," he said.

Illa stressed that the goal goes beyond issuing "recommendations." The government plans to write the guide's proposals that fall under its authority into law, creating a "solid, reliable and permanent legal framework," he said. 

The aim is to make the measures "enforceable and lasting" so they do not depend on which party is in power.

Illa said the legislation would recognize children's digital rights "for the first time," provide for coordination with other levels of government and set up a system to evaluate whether the measures are working.