Why Some US Schools Are Cutting Back On the Technology They Spent Billions On (msn.com)
- Reference: 0183164494
- News link: https://news.slashdot.org/story/26/05/09/029211/why-some-us-schools-are-cutting-back-on-the-technology-they-spent-billions-on
- Source link: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/why-some-schools-are-cutting-back-on-the-technology-they-spent-billions-on/ar-AA22BbF4
> Nationwide [U.S.] schools invested at least $15 billion and possibly as much as $35 billion from federal pandemic relief funds on laptops, learning software and other technology between 2020 and 2024, according to an estimate by the Edunomics Lab, an education think tank. By last school year, 88% of public schools reported in [2]a federal survey they had given every child a laptop, tablet or similar device.
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> Now, some states and school districts are walking back their technology use following pressure from parents who claim too much in-school screen time has zapped children's attention spans and left them worse off academically. At least a dozen states introduced or adopted policies this year that attempt to regulate screen time in schools — from prescribing limits to allowing families to opt out of virtual instruction... In Missouri, [3]a bill would require every school district in that state to come up with a screen time policy is making its way through the state legislature. "Ed tech is just big tech in a sweater vest," said Missouri state Rep. Tricia Byrnes (R), who introduced the legislation and blames what she described as the overuse of technology for middling test scores...
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> Complicating the issue is [4]research that shows students do not see any academic gains when provided with laptops. A [5]meta-analysis of studies on reading comprehension suggests paper-based texts are better than digital-based reading... A [6]body of research has established that excessive or unstructured screen time can have detrimental effects on children, including harming language development, weakening social skills and triggering anxiety and depression. But the effects of school-issued devices and in-school usage on children's development are less understood, said Tiffany Munzer, a developmental behavioral pediatrician and digital media researcher at the University of Michigan. Some studies report that high-quality digital tools can support students' learning goals, Munzer said. But "a lot of the apps that are marketed as educational ... are not actually educational and contain a lot of commercialized content."
[1] https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/why-some-schools-are-cutting-back-on-the-technology-they-spent-billions-on/ar-AA22BbF4
[2] https://ies.ed.gov/learn/press-release/more-half-public-school-leaders-say-cell-phones-hurt-academic-performance
[3] https://house.mo.gov/bill.aspx?bill=HB2230&year=2026&code=R
[4] https://www.iadb.org/en/blog/research-development/handing-out-laptops-not-enough-improve-student-learning
[5] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1747938X18300101#sec5
[6] https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10353947/
I find them to be useless... (Score:2)
Our younger kids have had school issued chromebooks since they were in kindergarten. They seem to mostly be used for roblox, mindcraft, and surfing "school safe" youtube. On the rare occasion that I see actual "school work" happening, it's more like a game than actual education. So we've redirected most of their after school time to team sports and playing outside. The world seems all stocked up on overweight children that are glued to games and screens. I'll make sure they know how to use computers, t
Re: (Score:3)
I'd suggest that it's not the Chromebook's fault, but rather, the lack of real effort to turn it into a teaching tool.
If a school hands out paper notebooks for students to take notes in, and they never teach the students how to use them effectively, the notebooks are useless as a teaching tool. There are also many bad textbooks that do a miserable job of teaching.
Many schools jumped on the technology bandwagon without thinking it through. "Give the students computers!" but little thought was put into what t
public schools need revamped (Score:1)
I'm not sure what needs to be done, but the way things are in the schools right now isn't working. Maybe some sort of hybrid AI/teacher system; smarter minds than mine really need to address the problems.
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It's simple really. Just do what we did twenty years ago. Pencils and paper are a lot cheaper then laptops and software subscriptions. Also, there have been studies showing that when you write stuff down, it tends to be more intentional then just entering the same information into a computer. Likely due to the fact that writing legibly requires more focus. You put more thought into what you are writing down.
As the top post on this thread mentions, many of us could of told the world this information 20 years
Re: (Score:2)
Parents no longer parent and expect the schools to teach their unruly and coddled child.
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See what's happening in the schools that can afford things...including teachers.
oh, pish, schools always resist any reforms (Score:1, Troll)
Schools always walk back any attempts at reform, successful or not, because they're seeking the cheapest possible solutions. Most of the attempts at reforms were harebrained in the first place, but even the ones that work are liable to be thrown into the dumpster. They'll drop the new failing system and return to the old failing system, because success doesn't seem to actually be part of what they're aiming for.
It is painfully obvious that technology is all around us and everybody needs to be familiar with
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I graduated high school in 2001 and we only had computers for computer classes. Some how, I still turned into a tech hobbyist that knows more about computers, networks, software, etc, then the vast majority of folks.
Kids have plenty of opportunities to use technology but just having the tech for the sake of tech is not helping them learn.
You don't need a computer to learn Math, languages, history, science or art. The kids are already being pushed into computer classes to learn programming (lol, sure) and no
you know what is going to happen (Score:2)
If any of those school kids invented anything really useful and unique, now that the schools canceled it the school will try to patent it and/or sell it to one of those big tech companies while the kid that come up with the idea in the first place won't get diddlysquat
Screens don't teach. (Score:4, Insightful)
Screen are a distraction and should be completely eliminated from grade school classrooms except for specific computing classes. That has been clear to me for over twenty years. We are creating generations of adults who never have to find their own answers. They cannot solve the most basic problems on their own.
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I don't disagree but I will say the screen time in school at least has some kind of learning involved. The screen time outside of school, not so much. Parents also need to parent. Take away the digital babysitters and have your kids go outside and be active or at least read a book if they won't go outside.
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> They cannot solve the most basic problems on their own.
That effect is not new and most people are suffering from it. The remaining minority keeps things running. But making that already small group even smaller is a really bad idea.
Re: Screens don't teach. (Score:2)
Screens aren't really the problem. The problem is wifi. There's absolutely nothing wrong with learning by reading a book on an e reader.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
It's not the screen. A screen is just a way of showing information.
Saying that screens don't teach, is like saying that paper doesn't teach. But nobody objects to using paper in the classroom.
It's not the screen, it's how the screen is used, just like it's how the paper is used.
Re: (Score:3)
So you can absolutely learn useful information from a screen. The electric company and sesame Street used phonics to teach inner city kids to read.
The issue is that at the end of the day you do need pen and paper because the motion of it reinforces brain pathways in a weighted screens don't.
You also still want teachers. The electric company and sesame Street did amazing things for students that were getting abandoned. And you can't exactly have a kid in class 24/7 so it's okay to have some screen ti
Re: (Score:2)
What can be done and what is nominally done are two different matters. Books and paper have smell, taste and texture ... and weight. And contingency ... that is a student may place a book or paper on her desk ... change its position or remove it. In schools the computer screen becomes a permanent necessary part of the environment, over which the student has no agency except to remove themselves. Small beans? Not really; it's the difference between OR & XOR logic and the deficit is bein