NewCanaanite.com recently received the following letter. Send letters to editor@newcanaanite.com to have them published here.
***
Just a few weeks before New Canaan Public Schools students returned to class in August, the Connecticut State Board of Education issued new guidance urging school districts to limit screen time and use technology only when it adds educational value.
For parents concerned about the surge in iPads and Chromebooks since Covid, the guidance is a breath of fresh air. It should also be a wake-up call for New Canaan Public Schools.
The guidance says what many parents have suspected for years: “educational technology has not produced the widespread gains in academic achievement that were once anticipated, and more time spent using digital devices in school has been tied to lower test scores.”
Our district’s strong reputation should not make us complacent. NCPS students are no less vulnerable to the drawbacks of excessive screen use than students elsewhere. We should expect our schools to adapt as the evidence changes.
Since the spring, we have been urging Superintendent Dr. Bryan Luizzi and the Board of Education to significantly curtail the use of iPads and Chromebooks, particularly in the elementary grades.
While the district plans to begin an audit of technology use next month, the review appears focused on documenting current practices rather than answering the more important questions: Where is technology actually improving learning, and where has it simply become the default? There is also no clear timeline for recommendations or implementation. An audit should not become a reason to delay commonsense changes that can be made now, and are being adopted elsewhere.
As parents with children spanning elementary, middle, and high school, this is what we propose:
- Eliminate iPad use in K–2 beginning in January 2027.
Books, paper, and pencils should once again be the default tools in K-2. The youngest students should spend classroom time reading physical books, writing by hand, and developing the ability to focus without a device in front of them.
- Significantly limit Chromebook use in grades 3–6.
Chromebooks should not be the go-to tool for assignments and research.
Students should be encouraged to use the library, read real books, write by hand, and complete projects without a screen. There are legitimate exceptions, of course, including for state testing and accommodations required under an IEP. However, those exceptions don’t justify making Chromebooks the default for most classroom work.
- Reduce reliance on smartboards and eliminate recreational screen use during the school day.
Teachers should reconsider the routine use of smartboards, particularly when screens are being used to entertain students or fill transition time. Students need to learn to manage transitions without a screen in the background. Screens also should no longer be relied on during indoor recess, snack time or gym.
- Eliminate use of AI-enabled tools in elementary and middle schools.
New York City just banned use of AI in elementary and middle schools. Meanwhile, in contrast, New Canaan Public Schools just sent home a “responsible use technology agreement” reminding 7th and 8th grade students to “not use AI to create harmful, false, or inappropriate content.” Middle school students are still developing the skills to think critically for themselves. Among other risks, AI will keep them from learning this skill if introduced too early.
We should also proceed with caution for high school students. Yes, they need to be able to leverage AI as a powerful tool, but also to understand how to use it responsibly.
- Measure & share screen use at Saxe and New Canaan High School.
The district should tell parents how much time middle and high school students actually spend on Chromebooks during a typical school day and why that use is educationally valuable. If current practices are justified, the data should show it; if they are not, we should know.
New Canaan prides itself on having exceptional schools. We should be willing to change course when the evidence changes.
Juliana Holterhaus, PhD, Vanessa Lowry, Anne Emson
New Canaan