All parents know how difficult it is to get your kids to put down their handphones. Now imagine having four children who are all hooked on their mobile devices?
That’s why celebrity couple Darren Lim, 52, and Evelyn Tan, 50, decided to sign two of their sons, Jarius, 18, and Way, 15, up for new CNA series No Screen, No Life?.
On the show, the boys were made to lock up their electronic gadgets and given a Nokia brick phone for 10 days.
The two boys, together with three other kids, will have their brain waves monitored by neuro experts at the Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS) before and after the experiment to see if the detox made a difference in their cognitive functions.
When 8days.sg got on a call with Tan and Lim, they say they had signed up all four of their kids for the experiment but sadly were told that the show only needed two.
Tan and Lim, who tied the knot in 2004, also have daughter, Kristen, 19, and another son, Elliot, 11.
“We wanted all of them to go through the experiment. At least that’s 10 days of no screen time for all of them,” Tan laughed.
Post-experiment, the couple was pleased to see quite significant improvements in the boys’ sleep patterns and focus.
The experiment, however, also came with a fair share of struggles for everyone.
Lim said his sons were doing “quite okay” for the first two days but halfway through the experiment, started feeling the itch to reach for their phones.
Jarius, who was preparing for his O-Levels during the experiment, even said he needed his phone to help him study because he’s an audio learner.
“It was hard for us. We tried to bargain but when he used that trump card, that it’s for school and exams, we had no choice but to let him have access to it,” laughed Tan.
However, Tan and Lim made it clear to Jarius that he would have to admit it on the show it if he chose to break the experiment.
“I did tell him: ‘Are you ready to tell the whole world that you failed the experiment?’ and he said: ‘Yah, because I have [the reason of school] to back me up’,” recalled Tan, who was the one in charge of gatekeeping the gadgets as Lim was travelling a lot for work at that time.
The couple, however, laughed that the results might have been better if Lim was the gatekeeper instead of Tan.
“Mum is always [up for] negotiations,” chuckled Tan while Lim admitted it’s “easier” for him to say no.
The couple have their own set of rules when it comes to their children’s phone usage.
The kids are not allowed to use their phones at the dining table and when they are in the car together. They also can’t play games after midnight, except for certain weekends.
“But teenagers being teenagers, we set the rules and the rules are made to be broken so we will have all those conversations with them,” said Tan.
So which kid is the most rebellious? “I would say it’s Jarius,” laughed Lim.
