To the Sleepy Hollow and Tarrytown Community,
I am working with a growing group of parents, caregivers, and family members who would like the TUFSD Administration and Board of Education to reevaluate the use of screens as an educational tool. Right now, our children are given screens in school at all grade levels, and they are often required for homework in higher grade levels. Yet research shows that “hands-on,” pencil-and-paper learning is more effective and better for children in many cases. We are advocating for greater oversight, more thoughtful planning, and an update to our current policies that reflect day-to-day reality.
We are not anti-tech; we are pro-learning. At the same time, we want our children to learn age appropriate and educational technology skills. Therefore, we are advocating for greater transparency, planning, and policy updates to reflect the latest research. I have been impressed by the leadership that the TUFSD Administration has taken regarding technology use but we are advocating for stronger, quicker action to protect our students. We want two primary things:
1: Information: We are asking for the TUFSD school district to share information about how screens are used currently at school in each grade.
For instance, how often is YouTube played in the classrooms for kids (DannyGo, ad supported playlists, videos,etc)? How many hours per day are middle school students on their Chromebooks? What software tools are children provided for their school work, which ones require internet access, and which ones have AI? Parents want to know, but we are in the dark right now.
2: Be Intentional and Realistic About Tech Use: Set policies that limit screen time by grade level.
For example, reevaluate the one-to-one device model and shift to a cart- or loaner- model. It also includes being realistic about how policies are implemented in the classroom, what it is like on a day-to-day basis, including work-arounds and individual teaching styles. Teacher support should be included and hands-on teaching should be celebrated. Hands-on learning should become the default; technology should be used when the evidence shows that it increases learning. Anecdotes about in-classroom experience will be helpful for this.
Ultimately we would like to shift back to pen-and-paper instruction in core subjects, prohibit screens for unstructured time, especially for our youngest students, and eliminate unnecessary or distracting software. In other words, encourage real-life interactions and hands-on work to build creative, strong, and resilient children.
Ten days ago we started a petition to build support and gather information, here: TUFSD Unplugged: Petition to Study Screentime and Device Usage at TUFSD Schools.
Some of the responses we have received so far are troubling. Here are some samples:
“Every time I walk into a classroom in elementary school there is the white board screens on in the background, playing music, showing a video. When a book is read it’s on the white board – screen seems to be on the entire day on the background”
“The amount of games that my son has been exposed to on the Chromebook and are allowed through the district filters is mind blowing.”
“My fourth grader came home with a writing assignment in which she was instructed to use an AI tool, MagicSchool, to edit and suggest ideas for her writing.”
“My daughter had access to a game i didn’t know she was playing. She told me one day that she became a doctor in the game and had a family. Then she said that the game reported she was depressed because her dog died after accident eating Special K at a party.”
“Instead of illustrating stories by hand, our second grader has been using AI to generate images. This is problematic for so many reasons! Additionally our student in prekindergarten comes home talking about the ads that he sees when his teacher plays him Danny go videos on the “TV.””
Do you have stories like these? Please share them using the petition and we will (anonymously) consolidate them into data that can be shared with the Administration and Board of Education. We need first hand experiences like this to help explain why the devices we give children are not benign tools, they are designed to capture attention, designed to serve up software, ads, and information that will keep kids watching, not necessarily what will keep them learning.
Join us at https://groups.google.com/g/TUFSD-Unplugged.
-Lauren Connell
Parent of a 3, 5, and 7 Year Old
Trustee and Deputy Mayor, Village of Sleepy Hollow
