The upsurge in children’s screen time has sparked concerns about its impact on children’s learning, development, and well-being. Three-quarters of students in OECD countries spend more than one hour per weekday browsing social networks and nearly one in three students gets distracted by using digital devices in class. How to protect and equip students to navigate digital environments? This PISA in Focus explores why students rely on devices and how their digital device use relates to their mathematics performance, sense of belonging at school, and how much they become distracted. It highlights the role of education policies that improve students’ digital skills and behaviours and prepare teachers to teach with technology in protecting students from digital distractions at school and beyond, and building their ability to navigate digital environments.