The latest large-scale analysis of distance learning and its impact on student achievement sheds devastating clarity on what all parents have seen during the pandemic. The idea is that children need connections with people in order to grow.
In fact, a New York Times study released this week found that attending school through a computer screen during the coronavirus crisis was as bad for learning as growing up in poverty.
This issue should no longer be blamed or blamed on the authorities who kept schools closed. It doesn't make any progress. However, there is a dire need for a strong and positive approach to the questions surrounding technology in education.
One reason for this is that children are likely to face emergencies in the future that require distance learning, so it is essential to better provide education in this way. But even as students return to class, the same technology that stole their attention at home is still present: cell phones. Before the pandemic, these handheld screens weren't widespread in every classroom. Now teachers seem powerless against them.
Seattle Public Schools has tried to take a stand by filing a lawsuit against social media companies like Facebook and TikTok. That's not the most direct approach.
Some places, like the small Reardan-Edwall district in eastern Washington, have banned younger students from having cellphones in class this year (high school students are allowed to use cellphones during morning recess and lunch). It is better to do so. Alternatively, the Peninsula and Aberdeen school districts have similarly strict anti-cell phone policies.
“We're having real human conversations again, and the bullying has gone down dramatically,” said a relieved Reardan-Edwall Superintendent Eric Sobotta. Told.
With this responsibility, these districts become Washington's vanguard. That's in line with other states like California, Tennessee and Florida that are facing reality. Technology is a powerful force, and its potential in education, for better or for worse, must be tackled head-on at the state level, not as a casual debate. About local control.
Rep. Stephanie McClintock (R-Vancouver) tried to pass a bill in the just-ended legislative session that would restrict cell phone use in all schools in Washington state. Her bill never passed the Appropriations Committee. But she plans to reintroduce it next year. One reason for this is that restricting cell phone use within schools may be the simplest and cheapest way to improve learning.
A study by the London School of Economics found that the mere presence of a phone in class can hinder the performance of children, especially those who already have difficulties.
These technology-based difficulties are not surprising. Years before the pandemic, researchers were raising sharp questions about the effectiveness of high school credit recovery programs built solely around online learning. And earlier this year, state Education Superintendent Chris Reykdal released guidelines for the use of artificial intelligence in the classroom, urging teachers to use it as a tool to enhance human inquiry.
That's a welcome step forward. But that's just the beginning. To protect children's developing brains and take full advantage of technology's undeniable potential, all of Washington's education leaders need to be smarter and faster at managing these tools. The future does not come to us. It's already here.
