Google rolls out School time for parents

L.A. district votes to ban phones during school

Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Alberto Carvalho joins LiveNOW's Andrew Craft to discuss its plan to ban students from using their cell phones during the school day.

As the upcoming school year nears, Google has rolled out an extra feature for parents with "School time"

What is Google school time?

According to Google, School time helps parents set a dedicated home screen to the child's personal device that will have limited functionality during school hours.

The goal is to lesson distractions during classes.

Parents will be able to determine which of their child's apps is accessible and allowed during school years. There will also be the same settings for calls or texts from specific contacts.

School time is also available outside class hours to help give children a break from screens.

Where is Google school time available?

Google said right now School time is available on Fitbit Ace LTE smartwatches. However, over the next year, the function will be rolled out to more devices, including select Android phones, tablets and Samsung Galaxy Watches.

What other features is Google rolling out?

Google said they have rolled out new supervision for parents whose teenage children are starting to use YouTube. Families can link their accounts, allowing parents to monitor their teen's activity on YouTube.

In Family Link, parents can enable parental controls for all ages.

For users under 18 years old, Google will automatically turn SafeSearch on that will enable restrictions and prevent autoplay on YouTube videos.

"We are continuously investing in research and development to address the evolving needs of parents and children," Google said on its website. "By working closely with experts in child development, education and technology, our goal is to help shape a future where technology continues to facilitate learning and exploration."

This story was reported from Los Angeles.