Simon Cowell’s partner, Lauren Cowell, is taking a closer look at children’s screen time after a conversation about their son Eric’s education left her questioning how schools use technology.
In an opinion piece for The Times on Saturday, Lauren revealed that a recent parents’ evening prompted her to reconsider how much time children spend using digital devices in the classroom.
She explained that a discussion about schoolwork led her to ask how much writing pupils actually do with pen and paper. The answer surprised her, particularly when she learned that much of Eric’s work involves an iPad and stylus.
She Said the Evening Was Eye-Opening
“I came away from a recent parents’ evening for my son Eric asking a question I hadn’t expected: when did handwriting become something children are supposed to practise at home?” she wrote.
Lauren, who shares 12-year-old Eric with Simon, admitted that she had not fully considered how much technology her son encounters during the school day.
“Simon and I spend a lot of time thinking about the screens Eric, who is 12, uses at home,” she explained. “Yet ask me how many hours he spends looking at one in school, and I honestly couldn’t tell you.”
Her concerns come after months of campaigning with Raise the Age for stronger protections for children online. Previously, her attention had focused primarily on social media, including addictive features and children’s exposure to harmful content.
Through the campaign, Lauren said she had met bereaved parents whose experiences had profoundly affected her. Those conversations also prompted her to reconsider the technology children encounter in other settings, including schools.
“What I hadn’t properly questioned was the technology we put in front of children in the name of education,” she wrote, adding that she had assumed schools used digital devices because there was evidence they improved learning.
Lauren & Simon Are on the Same Page
For Lauren, the issue is about finding a balance between technology and other childhood experiences.
“Simon and I want Eric to enjoy technology and understand how to use it. Of course we do,” she wrote. “But we also want him to get outside, read, spend time with friends and have a childhood that isn’t entirely organised around a device.”
She also praised Simon for stepping away from mobile phones years ago to avoid constant distractions. Lauren acknowledged that she finds it harder to resist picking up her own device, raising questions about how children are expected to concentrate when screens offer so many competing distractions.
Homework has become another source of frustration. Lauren recalled how her older son, Adam, 20, used textbooks and pens when he was Eric’s age. Today, she sometimes has to access Google Classroom just to check Eric’s assignments, which often require additional screen time.
“We’re told to limit children’s screen time, especially in the evening, but schoolwork sends them straight back to it,” she wrote.
Lauren said conversations with other parents have revealed similar uncertainty about how much time their children spend on devices at school.
She has also heard accounts of children accessing age-inappropriate material on school-issued devices. While stressing that this does not happen everywhere and that she does not blame teachers, she said the reports have strengthened her concerns.
Handwriting remains a particular worry for Lauren, who believes children need opportunities to develop fine motor skills through writing with a pen.
“Can’t there be room for both?” she asked, arguing that traditional handwriting and digital learning should be able to coexist.
Comments
Simon Cowell’s Partner Makes Big Move Because of Their Son