The majority of 11-year-olds own smartphones. And experts are worried | Nancy Jo Sales

When you raise the question of not giving kids phones at all, parents balk. 'How can we do that?' they ask. But what alternative is there?

A report released by Common Sense Media on Tuesday found that by age 11, 53% of kids in the US have their own smartphone. And 69% do by the time they're 12. This surge in phone ownership and the increased screen time associated with it comes amid growing concerns from experts and people like me that phones are bad for kids.

Related: In a world made small by smartphones, we crave escape into otherness | Brigid Delaney