Untag Surabaya Students Launch “Phygital Dolan Bareng” to Combat Child Gadget Addiction

SURABAYA — Andyka. Community service students from Universitas 17 Agustus 1945 (Untag) Surabaya have officially introduced “Dolan Bareng,” an innovative community initiative aimed at reducing screen time among children in RW 03 Gubeng, Surabaya (pp. 1, 4). Spearheaded by a multidisciplinary team under the guidance of Ir. Michella Beatrix, S.T., M.T., the project addresses the critical issue of digital dependency by reviving traditional Indonesian games (pp. 1, 4, 10). Recent field observations revealed that local children spend an average of 4 to 6 hours daily on mobile devices, leading to a highly sedentary lifestyle and weakened motor skills (pp. 4–5).

The “Dolan Bareng” festival successfully gathered over 80 children from RT 1 to RT 9 to participate in physical, collaborative games (pp. 4, 6). Team-based sports like gobak sodor, bakiak, and balap karung were introduced to foster cooperation, alongside individual dexterity games such as engkle, congklak, and gasing (pp. 4, 6). What sets this program apart is its unique “phygital” approach (pp. 8, 10). The team integrated QR codes onto physical game stations, allowing parents and youth communities to instantly scan and access 60-second animated tutorial videos and safety guidelines hosted on cloud storage (pp. 8, 11).

To ensure long-term sustainability, the KKN team officially donated complete sets of traditional game equipment to the RW 03 Gubeng leadership (pp. 6, 8). Parents were also trained to use screen-time tracking applications to maintain a balanced digital lifestyle at home (p. 8). This research-backed initiative demonstrates how local cultural heritage, enhanced by modern technology, can provide an effective digital detox for urban youth (pp. 7, 10, 12).