Google's Rolling Out New Android Parental Controls for Back-to-School

Keeping kids focused in the age of electronics is challenging, especially when you still want to be able to get in touch with them when they're not at home. That's why Google has opted to expand and add new Android parental controls for devices.

Google announced the changes on Thursday on The Keyword blog, including a coming expansion of the School time setting, which was first introduced with Fitbit Ace LTE smartwatches in May 2024, and some new controls that can be tailored to your family needs no matter what age your children are.

The School time setting allows you to set up specific hours during which your child's phone displays a dedicated home screen with limited access to apps and phone functionality. You can set this reduced access to be during school hours or any other time that you want to limit your child's screen time while still giving them access to communication tools. These features will be available "over the next year."

New supervision features for YouTube are also coming to Android "later this summer." Geared toward teens, these features will allow you to link your account with your teens so you can see exactly what your teen is watching on YouTube.

These feature updates are in addition to Google's pre-existing Android Parental Controls and recent other improvements, including safeguards related to body image that Google announced in 2023.