Norman parents complain of school tech
NORMAN — Dozens of Norman parents said they were unhappy with technology use in the city's public school district, with fears of exc essive screen time, lacking guidelines and exposure to inappropriate internet content.
About 100 parents packed a Norman School Board meeting Monday evening. One-by-one for about an hour and a half, parents complained about the district's technology initiative.
In 2017, Norman schools began providing a MacBook Air computer to every secondary student and iPads to elementary schools. Students with school-issued laptops are allowed to take their computer home.
Families cr i tici zed the district for embracing the devices without creating comprehensive technology policies. Several parents also expressed worry over a drastic increase in their children' s daily screen time, as well as school internet filters being easily circumvented.
Superintendent Nick Migliorino said administrators are working on new practices to implement in schools.
“Technology was brought in as away to break down the walls of the classroom as opposed to just being able to deliver the content that is in a static textbook ,” Migliorino said. “There has to be guidelines, ( I) completely agree, 100% agree, and you have my promise that we will be bringing those to you.”
Drew and Amy Nichols, who have three sons enrolled in Norman schools, said the district failed to establish measurable goals for the devices before introducing them into classrooms.
“So far, my son's grades have gone down, but my property taxes herein Norman have gone up,” Drew Nichols said .“I thought we were getting storm shelters. Instead we got hit with this storm of technology.”
Their 11- year- old son witnessed another student display pornographic images on a computer screen while in class, Amy Nichols said.
“A piece of his innocence was taken from him that day with no warning, no explanation and no malicious intent,” she said. “My son was 11 years old when he was first exposed to pornography. It happened on a school device while he satin a sixth-grade classroom.”
Mark Deaver, owner of Norman Computers, said he and his staff created a video for the Norman City Council, showing how the school district's internet filters could be bypassed with “common knowledge that any 10-year-old would have.”
“It's gotten to the point where a number of my customers will simply take away the school laptop,” Deaver said.
Migliorino said concerns over the school filters have been addressed, but internet safety is “everchanging every day.”
The school district' s website says it has dedicated $16 million to student and classroom technology. Most of the expenses are being paid for with bond funds. The district spent more than $8.6 million in August on MacBook Airs, iPads, Apple TVs,iP ad cases and training for the Apple devices.
BrooksMc Mu ll an, whose children attend Norman schools, chided district administrators for not choosing a cheaper option than Apple.
“Who chose the most expensive tech option for our children to use?” Mc Mu ll an said .“My family did not choose this option, and I am sure many in this room would agree a less expensive option would have provided the basics needed for this technology program to still function well.”
Apple provides its devices to educational institutions, like school districts, for discounted rates and pack purchases. For example, a MacBook Air with 128 gigabytes of storage typically costs $1,100 retail, but Norman administrators bought more than 9,860 of those laptops for $699 each, district purchase orders show.
Many parents said they already struggled to limit their children' s screen time at home. School-issued devices have kept their children's eyes trained on screens throughout the day, both in their free time and while doing classwork.
One parent said her daughter completes required reading assignments on her computer. She began complaining of headaches and eye strain after looking at her laptop for hours at a time. An optometrist prescribed her glasses and advised her to work for only 20 minutes before taking a break from the screen.
Jennifer Skinner said her family installed a special router in their home to limit internet access and monitor her children' s screens.
She doesn't have those same controls while her children are at school.
“The district is making it that much harder for all of the parents to enforce limits that they've chosen for their kids,” Skinner said.
“Ultimately, every single parent that I have talked to in the district absolutely hates having these computers at home and they want them gone.”
Migliorino advised parents to tell their children's teacher or principal if they want to opt out of having a school-issued device. Teachers already have the ability view screens, but the district can put additional monitoring in place, he said.