Behind the Screen: Screen Time & Persuasive Design
A ready-to-use media literacy lesson that helps teenagers understand their screen use without lectures, shame, or one-size-fits-all rules.
Technology can help young people connect, create, learn and relax. It can also leave them feeling distracted, drained, or spending longer online than they intended.
Behind the Screen helps students explore both sides. They learn how technology can affect mental health, recognise the persuasive design techniques apps use to capture their attention, and understand the difference between passive, active and creative screen use.
The goal is critical awareness, not compliance. Students are encouraged to notice their own patterns and make informed choices about how they use technology.
What You’ll Get
A ready-to-deliver classroom module including:
- PowerPoint presentation slides
- Facilitator notes with talking points, discussion prompts and key messages
- Student worksheets and screen-use reflection activities
- Group activity exploring the tricks apps use to keep us engaged
- Persuasive design education, including infinite scroll, autoplay, variable rewards, FOMO, gamification and social validation
- Passive, active and creative screen-use framework
- Screen-use tracking and reflection activity
- Bonus Tricks handout for classroom display or sharing with families
What Students Will Learn
Students will:
- Explore how technology can positively and negatively affect mental health
- Recognise persuasive design techniques used to capture attention
- Differentiate between passive, active and creative screen use
- Reflect on how different types of screen use affect them
- Identify patterns in their own screen use and consider realistic changes
Who It’s For
Designed for:
- Secondary school teachers
- School counsellors, psychologists and wellbeing teams
- Health and wellbeing educators
- Psychologists, therapists and youth workers
Ideal for media literacy, digital wellbeing, health and wellbeing lessons, pastoral care, small groups, or individual therapeutic work.
No perfect screen time. No one-size-fits-all rules. Just greater awareness and more choice.
