A new study has found that more than third of children have pleaded with their parents to stop checking their cell phones and pay more attention to them. Is this just a classic example of “the pot calling the kettle black” or is there something more to it?

Cnet.com is reporting on a new survey of over 2,000 pupils and 3,000 parents regarding the use of mobile devices which found that one in seven pupils (36%) say they feel ignored or at least annoyed by their parents when they send text messages, make calls, or check Facebook during meals. The students, who were between the ages of 11 and 18, said they asked their parents to stop but 46 percent say their requests were ignored.

The students who responded to the survey, which was carried out by the nonprofit Digital Awareness UK and the Headmasters’ and Headmistresses’ Conference (HMC), a professional organization for teachers, say these habits are affecting quality family time.For example, 22 percent of the pupils say the use of cell phones has stopped family members from enjoying one another’s company. Eighty-two percent say they believe phones should be banned at mealtimes.

However, there seems to be quite a disconnect between parent and child when it comes to parental cell phone use. .

“ . . . [O]nly 10 percent of parents think their internet use upset their children, showing a disparity between parental perceptions and children’s actual feelings,” cnet reports. “However, parents did recognize their phone use might be excessive, with 43 percent of the adults saying they spent too much time online.”

It’s also interesting to note that 95 percent of parents said do not use their cell phones during mealtime even though 14 percent of the pupils polled say they do and more than 42 percent said they felt either annoyed or ignored because of it.

In actual time spent on the phone, 21 percent of parents say they’re on line with their devices for 6-10 hours during an average work day and 37 percent confess to being on line between three and five hours on weekends. On the other hand, 72 percent of students use their cell phone more on weekends – anywhere from three to 10 hours.

Interestingly, nearly half of students said they “wouldn’t mind” if all their devices were taken away for a weekend. Another 20 percent said they would feel ‘isolated’ and 11 percent admitted this would make them feel “panicky.”

When it comes to perception of the negative impact of this bad behavior, parents and students once again diverge.

For example, youth are more worried about how it impacts their sleep whereas parents are more concerned about how their child’s online usage is impacting their social skills. In fact, parents are more concerned about this than they are about cyberbullying and sexting, according to the survey.

“These results are shocking,” said Emma Robertson, co-founder of Digital Awareness UK. “We are surprised that the biggest concern when it comes to online safety for parents is the impact technology has on their children’s social skills, especially as this is an area that few schools are providing education around. Interestingly children believe their parents’ biggest concern would be linked to sleep deprivation, an issue that has recently been spotlighted.

“This might be partly explained by the fact that the thousands of children we talk to in schools tell us that their parents often don’t know how much time they’re spending on their devices overnight, or what they are actually doing online. This is a new and hidden world which adults can find hard to penetrate.

“We hope these findings will be a wake-up call for families and motivate them to have serious conversations about the safe and healthy use of technology. We are encouraged by the attention some schools are now giving to this serious issue and the attempts to bring teachers, pupils and parents together to find consistent solutions.”

Mike Buchanan, Chair of the HMC, agrees. “Mobile devices have become an integral part of life at school, work and play and parents, teachers and pupils need to work together to rewrite the rule book,” he said.

“Our poll shows that children are aware of many of the risks associated with over use of technology but they need the adults in their lives to set clear boundaries and role model sensible behavior.”