Classroom tech carries consequences
As a mom and pediatrician who has practiced in Fairfield County for more than 15 years, I am alarmed by the increasing flood of technology that is entering our classrooms. While technology use is increasing, our children’s social intelligence is diminishing. The ParentChild diad is sacred and is key to our children’s wellbeing. In our classrooms it’s the TeacherChild Diad. However, what I have observed sadly is that it is being replaced by the Parent/Teacher/Screen Child Triad.
A few years ago, my sister’s family moved to Marin County for the same reason most of us do — an exemplary school district. The following year, she pulled both of her kids out of the public school system and enrolled them in a local private school where there is no technology in the classroom until eighth grade. She wanted her kids to have the “luxury” of interacting with their teachers and their friends without iPads and screens. What an interesting revelation — has the idea of the “digital divide” been completely flipped on its face? The most educated among us now have choices — the choice to decide that we don’t want our kids stuck in front of a computer screen.
Every one of us has by now heard of Personalized Learning. Yet very few of us understand what it entails. I started to read as much as I could on this topic. The most informative article I came across was a July 2019 article in the New Yorker titled “The messy reality of personalized learning.” The author defined personalized learning as “the commonsensical ancient practice of getting to know each child as an individual and catering to his /her needs.” Unfortunately, the translation in our district appears to have devolved into having our children stuck in front of screens with the role of the teacher increasingly diminished.
As parents, it’s important to consider that education is being digitized. Experts have referred to this as one of the largest social experiments ever to be conducted on children. Since the districtwide launch of iPads and Chromebooks in 2015, has the Board of Education audited or done any analysis on how this experiment is going? How as parents are we allowing this? How does this happen in one of the most educated ZIP codes in the country? In districts nationwide, communities are fighting the onslaught by Apple and Google to put devices into kids’ hands, without due diligence.
Technology and computers are an important tool and are necessary for students to have the necessary skills to compete in the workforce. However, why hasn’t the Board of Education considered what the right time is for introducing these tools?
Just as curriculum such as foreign language and music are introduced at later stages of elementary education, what is the goal of providing kindergartenaged children with iPads? When we introduce iPads at an early age, we are teaching our children to be tech users. We are not teaching them technology. Teaching technology is about teaching coding and teaching logic. It involves group collaboration and tools to learn how to successfully research an idea. As a pediatrician, when I see pictures of kids sitting around in circle time with their eyes glued to screens and headphones on, I know with certainty that we are doing these kids a huge disservice. I know that by saying nothing I am silently consenting to this.
The manual for every iPad includes a warning about electromagnetic radiation exposure, especially for children. Warnings include the dangers of putting iPads in children’s laps for long stretches of time. A growing body of scientific studies shows this causes measurable biological damage. And this damage is amplified when kids are within a certain proximity to routers.
Our selfnamed movement is called “Smart Tech.” Our mission is to raise social and healthy kids within our community through the judicious use of screen time during school hours. Greenwich is not the first district where parents are trying to make sense of and question the extent to which technology is overtaking our classrooms. Nationwide many districts are voicing concerns. Recently in Connecticut, Cheshire successfully ousted the Summit program (a Zuckerberg Chen digital learning initiative).
The scales have tilted too far and education is being supplanted by technology. Why are we not fighting for our kids to have the best possible education? We need to fight hard for our children and for the sacred relationship they have with their teachers.
The Smart Tech group has chosen orange as its designation color. The first Greenwich Board of Education meeting is at 7 p.m. Sept. 19 at New Lebanon school. We debate school start time, food choices, sports facility issues, and vacation schedules. We invite every parent to join us in voicing concerns. If you cannot attend, we encourage you to write to the Board of Education at boardofedmembers@greenwich.k12.ct.us.
We urge you to visit us on Facebook and sign our petition at https://smarttechmovement.squarespace.com Here are some goals of our organization: Severely reduce iPad usage in grades k3, aligned with the American Academy of Pediatrics guidelines.
Introduce Chromebooks (and eliminate iPads) in grades 4 and 5, to prepare for middle school transition.
Provide parents with regular weekly updates of how many hours kids spend in front of screens.
Institute “technology free” zones and classes, such as gym, music and art classes in elementary schools.
As a safety concern, we believe the Board of Ed should study the effects of electromagnetic radiation emitted through iPads and routers in schools, and determine the proper amount of exposure levels.
A Board of Education meeting was rife with parents voicing concerns across the district about behavioral challenges within classrooms. We wonder if this could be linked to excessive technology usage, especially in lower grades. We believe research should be conducted on whether heightened amounts of technology can result in an increase in impulsivity and behavioral issues among students.
Remember that issues worth fighting for are never easy.