Educators in Illinois Town Push Back On Screen Overload In Classrooms

Studies indicate that increased use of technology in schools is associated with lower test scores.

In Illinois, Galesburg District 205 will stop assigning individual Chromebooks to students in grades two through eight for the next school year.

“We are really taking a very concerted look at technology use in all of our grade levels, as we’ve seen some negative impacts towards learning and growth of students due to the tremendous amount of screen time that really developed during COVID,” Jennifer Hamm, assistant superintendent for finance and operations, told the school board.

According to TSPR, Hamm said the district is not getting rid of technology entirely.

“We’re just being very thoughtful about how much screen time our students are engaged in,” she said.

The district is moving to a different system in which students check out devices as needed. The technology will be stored in shared carts in classrooms and libraries and used only when instruction requires it.

The school district is not alone. McPherson Middle School, located in central Kansas, has transitioned into using its laptops for specific teacher-assigned activities. The Chromebooks now sit in the back of the classrooms, and children are taking notes in what they likely see as an archaic way: pencil to paper.

“This technology can be a tool. It is not the answer to education,” McPherson’s principal, Inge Esping, told Fortune.

Schools in states like Illinois and Kansas are reconsidering technology policies. Studies show that increased use of technology in schools is associated with lower test scores.

Jared Cooney Horvath, a neuroscientist and former teacher, said in written testimony before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, & Transportation, that math and science scores have decreased as technology has been introduced in classrooms.

Distractions are a major culprit. Horvath claimed that Gen Z is the first generation in modern history to score lower than their parents’ generation on standardized tests.

That’s why more school districts are pushing back, decreasing screen time, and focusing on old-school analog learning.

“If the goal is learning, then most situations, yes, analog learning is better than digital learning in almost every situation we’ve looked at,” Horvath told The Hill. “I think you can keep tech. It’ll just be very specific in when you’re using it, and most of the time it’ll be, teach about the tech, as opposed to using it to teach other skills through it.”