EdTech Transparency

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Since there are accommodations for lots of things, why can’t my kid get one since he has issues with staying on task when on a laptop?? And I know he is not alone.

It doesn’t really matter. Teachers are not prepared to teach without devices and technology, they just aren’t. One kid having an IEP to not use a device isn’t going to change how the teacher instructs the class and interaction with students or the work they do. That kid will just be given some generic afterthought worksheet. Not only do devices need to be out of classes, there needs to be a systematic change to how teachers are teaching. It is so bad.

+1000

The resistance to change from teachers is so telling. They are addicted to edtech

Clearly you have an agenda to make such a distorted comment.

Leave our teachers and schools alone. So disgusting.

Nope, just stating the obvious.

So many people here claiming to be teachers have such a instinctual reaction when they see parents giving their kids screens but can't fathom that many parents that are seeing the harms of screens feel the exact same way about the use of screens in schools. Y'all are a bunch of hypocrites. The anti edtech movement is growing and we are going to take the screens from the classrooms. Get ready.

I’m a parent and you are a disgusting person to baselessly attack teachers.

Were you one of those open school teacher haters? You sound as irrational and hateful as them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I also wish teachers went back to blackboard and chalk instead of PowerPoint, smart boards and dry erase boards. The contrast of the blackboard and chalk is easier to view and it is multi sensorial. This is an interesting article about the education benefits of a chalkboard- while I wouldn’t have been able to articulate this myself, it makes perfect sense to how I feel about it. While it’s geared toward college students- I think it is relevant to elementary as well

https://compasspubindonesia.com/blogs/2025/11/17/why-teaching-with-chalk-and-blackboard-is-more-effective/

Totally agree. There was also a study about how college students that took notes with own and paper instead of a laptop learned more.

Reducing edtech in schools is an important fight. No parent should have to worry about their kid being exposed to porn at school from another kid's school issued device, not to mention being forced to constantly use a distracting Internet connected device when they are supposed to be learning. Parents should not give up.

Teacher here and I am not sure why a dry erase board is worse than a chalkboard. I use my tv as a digital chalkboard. I have an iPad that I write that is screen mirrored to the tv. As I write all the kindergartners can see proper letter formation as I write without my body blocking their view. I can also always face the kids and correct their hand writing as we go because I don’t turn my back on them. I don’t use it for slide decks, books or any other tech except movement videos/ brain breaks. Can you explain why this isn’t an improvement over a chalk board.

It is pretty clear after you bother to do some basic research, which you are clearly not interested in given you didn't even bother to read the article

Did you read it? The first picture under the title is a kid on a dry erase board. The article never mentions dry erase boards va chalk boards. Only you did that. So you can continue to yell that no one is reading the article, but you aren’t understanding much about your position or the article.

Chalkboards are have an advantage over whiteboards because there is more contrast so it is easier on people's eyes.

Not having the screen in the classroom is better than having it in the classroom because it means kids aren't watching videos (like the "brain breaks") at schools every day. Screens are addictive, kids know what they can do, and that is distracting. It sounds like it barely adds any value to your classroom anyway. Use the money to send home actual books

Using a chalk board also slows writing speed. The cadence of writing is just different on chalk board vs white board. Plus there is an auditory component: you can hear when the teacher starts and stops writing, you can hear the strokes of the letters. I can absolutely see how this seems so minor but can make a big difference in how information is transmitted

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I also wish teachers went back to blackboard and chalk instead of PowerPoint, smart boards and dry erase boards. The contrast of the blackboard and chalk is easier to view and it is multi sensorial. This is an interesting article about the education benefits of a chalkboard- while I wouldn’t have been able to articulate this myself, it makes perfect sense to how I feel about it. While it’s geared toward college students- I think it is relevant to elementary as well

https://compasspubindonesia.com/blogs/2025/11/17/why-teaching-with-chalk-and-blackboard-is-more-effective/

Totally agree. There was also a study about how college students that took notes with own and paper instead of a laptop learned more.

Reducing edtech in schools is an important fight. No parent should have to worry about their kid being exposed to porn at school from another kid's school issued device, not to mention being forced to constantly use a distracting Internet connected device when they are supposed to be learning. Parents should not give up.

Teacher here and I am not sure why a dry erase board is worse than a chalkboard. I use my tv as a digital chalkboard. I have an iPad that I write that is screen mirrored to the tv. As I write all the kindergartners can see proper letter formation as I write without my body blocking their view. I can also always face the kids and correct their hand writing as we go because I don’t turn my back on them. I don’t use it for slide decks, books or any other tech except movement videos/ brain breaks. Can you explain why this isn’t an improvement over a chalk board.

It is pretty clear after you bother to do some basic research, which you are clearly not interested in given you didn't even bother to read the article

Did you read it? The first picture under the title is a kid on a dry erase board. The article never mentions dry erase boards va chalk boards. Only you did that. So you can continue to yell that no one is reading the article, but you aren’t understanding much about your position or the article.

Chalkboards are have an advantage over whiteboards because there is more contrast so it is easier on people's eyes.

Not having the screen in the classroom is better than having it in the classroom because it means kids aren't watching videos (like the "brain breaks") at schools every day. Screens are addictive, kids know what they can do, and that is distracting. It sounds like it barely adds any value to your classroom anyway. Use the money to send home actual books

Chalkboards also have chalk and dust that some people are allergic to. My second grade teacher couldn’t touch the stuff. We used a lot of overheads in the 80s so teachers could write in color when highlighting and underlining etc. It wasn’t addictive. White boards aren’t addictive and even my color blind kid can read the white board colors.

No, I can’t just order books. Teachers are not able to control the budget of the school with the 50 bucks the PTA gives them.

You are stuck in the mindset that schools need to be the fix for societal issues once again. If screens are so instantly addictive why are you participating in online forums and using your phone/device to do so?

Screens being addictive is actually not the main problem of EdTech. The problem is literally that it is ineffective at teaching. Kids need to be reading books, writing, taking notes, organizing words, thoughts, numbers on paper. The teacher need to be giving direct instruction in class, not slides and Quizlet, Gimkit stuff.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I also wish teachers went back to blackboard and chalk instead of PowerPoint, smart boards and dry erase boards. The contrast of the blackboard and chalk is easier to view and it is multi sensorial. This is an interesting article about the education benefits of a chalkboard- while I wouldn’t have been able to articulate this myself, it makes perfect sense to how I feel about it. While it’s geared toward college students- I think it is relevant to elementary as well

https://compasspubindonesia.com/blogs/2025/11/17/why-teaching-with-chalk-and-blackboard-is-more-effective/

Totally agree. There was also a study about how college students that took notes with own and paper instead of a laptop learned more.

Reducing edtech in schools is an important fight. No parent should have to worry about their kid being exposed to porn at school from another kid's school issued device, not to mention being forced to constantly use a distracting Internet connected device when they are supposed to be learning. Parents should not give up.

Teacher here and I am not sure why a dry erase board is worse than a chalkboard. I use my tv as a digital chalkboard. I have an iPad that I write that is screen mirrored to the tv. As I write all the kindergartners can see proper letter formation as I write without my body blocking their view. I can also always face the kids and correct their hand writing as we go because I don’t turn my back on them. I don’t use it for slide decks, books or any other tech except movement videos/ brain breaks. Can you explain why this isn’t an improvement over a chalk board.

It is pretty clear after you bother to do some basic research, which you are clearly not interested in given you didn't even bother to read the article

Did you read it? The first picture under the title is a kid on a dry erase board. The article never mentions dry erase boards va chalk boards. Only you did that. So you can continue to yell that no one is reading the article, but you aren’t understanding much about your position or the article.

Chalkboards are have an advantage over whiteboards because there is more contrast so it is easier on people's eyes.

Not having the screen in the classroom is better than having it in the classroom because it means kids aren't watching videos (like the "brain breaks") at schools every day. Screens are addictive, kids know what they can do, and that is distracting. It sounds like it barely adds any value to your classroom anyway. Use the money to send home actual books

Chalkboards also have chalk and dust that some people are allergic to. My second grade teacher couldn’t touch the stuff. We used a lot of overheads in the 80s so teachers could write in color when highlighting and underlining etc. It wasn’t addictive. White boards aren’t addictive and even my color blind kid can read the white board colors.

No, I can’t just order books. Teachers are not able to control the budget of the school with the 50 bucks the PTA gives them.

You are stuck in the mindset that schools need to be the fix for societal issues once again. If screens are so instantly addictive why are you participating in online forums and using your phone/device to do so?

I mean it doesn't sound like you even want to have more books, you prefer the screens. I'm saying school districts need to reallocate the funding from screens to books and it sounds like it will be up to parents to do this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I also wish teachers went back to blackboard and chalk instead of PowerPoint, smart boards and dry erase boards. The contrast of the blackboard and chalk is easier to view and it is multi sensorial. This is an interesting article about the education benefits of a chalkboard- while I wouldn’t have been able to articulate this myself, it makes perfect sense to how I feel about it. While it’s geared toward college students- I think it is relevant to elementary as well

https://compasspubindonesia.com/blogs/2025/11/17/why-teaching-with-chalk-and-blackboard-is-more-effective/

Totally agree. There was also a study about how college students that took notes with own and paper instead of a laptop learned more.

Reducing edtech in schools is an important fight. No parent should have to worry about their kid being exposed to porn at school from another kid's school issued device, not to mention being forced to constantly use a distracting Internet connected device when they are supposed to be learning. Parents should not give up.

Teacher here and I am not sure why a dry erase board is worse than a chalkboard. I use my tv as a digital chalkboard. I have an iPad that I write that is screen mirrored to the tv. As I write all the kindergartners can see proper letter formation as I write without my body blocking their view. I can also always face the kids and correct their hand writing as we go because I don’t turn my back on them. I don’t use it for slide decks, books or any other tech except movement videos/ brain breaks. Can you explain why this isn’t an improvement over a chalk board.

It is pretty clear after you bother to do some basic research, which you are clearly not interested in given you didn't even bother to read the article

Did you read it? The first picture under the title is a kid on a dry erase board. The article never mentions dry erase boards va chalk boards. Only you did that. So you can continue to yell that no one is reading the article, but you aren’t understanding much about your position or the article.

Chalkboards are have an advantage over whiteboards because there is more contrast so it is easier on people's eyes.

Not having the screen in the classroom is better than having it in the classroom because it means kids aren't watching videos (like the "brain breaks") at schools every day. Screens are addictive, kids know what they can do, and that is distracting. It sounds like it barely adds any value to your classroom anyway. Use the money to send home actual books

Chalkboards also have chalk and dust that some people are allergic to. My second grade teacher couldn’t touch the stuff. We used a lot of overheads in the 80s so teachers could write in color when highlighting and underlining etc. It wasn’t addictive. White boards aren’t addictive and even my color blind kid can read the white board colors.

No, I can’t just order books. Teachers are not able to control the budget of the school with the 50 bucks the PTA gives them.

You are stuck in the mindset that schools need to be the fix for societal issues once again. If screens are so instantly addictive why are you participating in online forums and using your phone/device to do so?

Screens being addictive is actually not the main problem of EdTech. The problem is literally that it is ineffective at teaching. Kids need to be reading books, writing, taking notes, organizing words, thoughts, numbers on paper. The teacher need to be giving direct instruction in class, not slides and Quizlet, Gimkit stuff.

It's not all or nothing.

[Anonymous]

I’m a teacher and I’d love for you to get rid of the stupid slides from the county that I have to teach from. Good luck and you have my support. But I have my own life and don’t want to spend my free time fighting with my employer.

[Anonymous]

Public school teachers don’t really have a choice. Often, private school teachers have more say, but don’t have total control. I taught at a private K-12 and the English department (along with others) pushed back hard when admin wanted to introduce 1:1 iPads school wide. Admin pushed ahead anyway. We couldn’t require kids to have physical copies of the book, nor could we ask the kids to take notes on paper. The most you could do is limit the amount of on screen assignments and projects.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A lot of factors have influenced educational technology adoption over the last two decades. Your complaints aren’t going to overcome most of these factors.

Curriculum is dictated by state standards, and a lot of states have had some version of “21st century skills” that are tied to technology use across the curriculum. These skills can range from keyboarding, to evaluating the validity of online sources, to learning programming languages.

Another driving factor is book publishing. Increasingly, textbooks are available only as interactive PDFs. Whereas schools used to hang onto hard-cover books for 15 years or more, now they must re-license them every school year. Also, school libraries are understaffed and under resourced in many districts, so teachers rely on online resources for research projects.

Accommodating learning differences is another significant driver of ed tech. As one example, offering speech-to-text and typing options can be helpful to children with fine motor challenges and language-based learning disabilities that affect spelling. Schools also rely heavily on audiobook programs like Learning Ally to help children with dyslexia and reading comprehension challenges access grade-level curriculum. There’s also the issue of differentiation. Teachers are expected to provide engaging, accessible lessons to the entire class. Even in private schools where I have taught, ability ranges in classrooms are broad with some children placing below the 10th percentile on standardized tests, while others place at the 99th percentile. As long ago as 2010, I had an administrator tell me “Just put kids on Khan Academy” when I asked him/her how to best accommodate middle school children whose math skills were so weak they didn’t know their addition or multiplication facts. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to use effective direct instruction and help my students. I did have a real time management issue, however, as I tried to prepare kids for pre-algebra and remediate third-grade skills inside of a 45-minute class period with no support from aids or learning specialists.

We’ve had decades of parent complaints about students inattentive students who refuse to use plan books not knowing the homework and parents not having access to grades. Schools have turned to off-the-shelf software, like Google Classroom and Schoology, to solve these issues. For equity schools then issue devices so that families have access to the online information.

No parent complaint about ed tech is going to do away with the factors that influence teacher and administrator reliance on that technology. Nor are individual public schools in charge of contract negotiations and purchasing decisions. If you have an example of a specific harm from technology, raise it with your school board or private school head. If they hear enough feedback, they may take steps to mitigate the more harmful aspects. But if you think you can complain to the point where your school won’t use laptops or Web-based software any longer, that’s an unreasonable expectation.

....and this resigned attitude is how we'll end up with AI schools as the public school experience

+1

Schools are already using it! We toured more than one elementary school that used AI for kids that needed extra support in reading and math. They literally got pulled from class, put on a small room with headphones and their AI program, and done. Schools LOVE EdTech. Parents complaining isn’t going to move the needle. It will take a mass exodus of kids from public school, especially the kids who have parents with means/time to supplement with them to make up for the school’s inferior job (and artificially boost the school’s test scores).

Wow. That is shameless. Are you saying they don’t have special ed teachers anymore? No aides in the classroom?

Kids who need reading help but aren’t special ed don’t have special ed teachers now. And at my school the reading teachers use Lexia (a software program, not AI) to supplement their reading groups. If a kid still doesn’t know his letter sounds, a computer can drill it as well as a teacher can. Letter sounds are taught in K and somewhat in 1st. If a kid doesn’t know them by then, the curriculum does not keep teaching them because the rest of the class is ready to move on.

Are they using a microphone and the computer program gives feedback on accuracy of the sound...or how does this work? With something as verbal as practicing letter sounds, I don't know how a computer could drill as effectively as a teacher.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m a teacher and I’d love for you to get rid of the stupid slides from the county that I have to teach from. Good luck and you have my support. But I have my own life and don’t want to spend my free time fighting with my employer.

Nobody expects you to do that. That is what unions are for. Unions have so much power in our district. They basically choose who is on the Board of Education. Parents also can and should also advocate, knowing that parents have successfully advocated for important changes like reading curricula.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m a teacher and I’d love for you to get rid of the stupid slides from the county that I have to teach from. Good luck and you have my support. But I have my own life and don’t want to spend my free time fighting with my employer.

Teachers may not have a choice in what to teach (set standards), but they do have a fair amount of autonomy in how to teach those standards, the methods, and pedagogy used. So yes, teachers are partly at fault for the collapse of public education.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A lot of factors have influenced educational technology adoption over the last two decades. Your complaints aren’t going to overcome most of these factors.

Curriculum is dictated by state standards, and a lot of states have had some version of “21st century skills” that are tied to technology use across the curriculum. These skills can range from keyboarding, to evaluating the validity of online sources, to learning programming languages.

Another driving factor is book publishing. Increasingly, textbooks are available only as interactive PDFs. Whereas schools used to hang onto hard-cover books for 15 years or more, now they must re-license them every school year. Also, school libraries are understaffed and under resourced in many districts, so teachers rely on online resources for research projects.

Accommodating learning differences is another significant driver of ed tech. As one example, offering speech-to-text and typing options can be helpful to children with fine motor challenges and language-based learning disabilities that affect spelling. Schools also rely heavily on audiobook programs like Learning Ally to help children with dyslexia and reading comprehension challenges access grade-level curriculum. There’s also the issue of differentiation. Teachers are expected to provide engaging, accessible lessons to the entire class. Even in private schools where I have taught, ability ranges in classrooms are broad with some children placing below the 10th percentile on standardized tests, while others place at the 99th percentile. As long ago as 2010, I had an administrator tell me “Just put kids on Khan Academy” when I asked him/her how to best accommodate middle school children whose math skills were so weak they didn’t know their addition or multiplication facts. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to use effective direct instruction and help my students. I did have a real time management issue, however, as I tried to prepare kids for pre-algebra and remediate third-grade skills inside of a 45-minute class period with no support from aids or learning specialists.

We’ve had decades of parent complaints about students inattentive students who refuse to use plan books not knowing the homework and parents not having access to grades. Schools have turned to off-the-shelf software, like Google Classroom and Schoology, to solve these issues. For equity schools then issue devices so that families have access to the online information.

No parent complaint about ed tech is going to do away with the factors that influence teacher and administrator reliance on that technology. Nor are individual public schools in charge of contract negotiations and purchasing decisions. If you have an example of a specific harm from technology, raise it with your school board or private school head. If they hear enough feedback, they may take steps to mitigate the more harmful aspects. But if you think you can complain to the point where your school won’t use laptops or Web-based software any longer, that’s an unreasonable expectation.

....and this resigned attitude is how we'll end up with AI schools as the public school experience

+1

Schools are already using it! We toured more than one elementary school that used AI for kids that needed extra support in reading and math. They literally got pulled from class, put on a small room with headphones and their AI program, and done. Schools LOVE EdTech. Parents complaining isn’t going to move the needle. It will take a mass exodus of kids from public school, especially the kids who have parents with means/time to supplement with them to make up for the school’s inferior job (and artificially boost the school’s test scores).

Wow. That is shameless. Are you saying they don’t have special ed teachers anymore? No aides in the classroom?

Kids who need reading help but aren’t special ed don’t have special ed teachers now. And at my school the reading teachers use Lexia (a software program, not AI) to supplement their reading groups. If a kid still doesn’t know his letter sounds, a computer can drill it as well as a teacher can. Letter sounds are taught in K and somewhat in 1st. If a kid doesn’t know them by then, the curriculum does not keep teaching them because the rest of the class is ready to move on.

Are they using a microphone and the computer program gives feedback on accuracy of the sound...or how does this work? With something as verbal as practicing letter sounds, I don't know how a computer could drill as effectively as a teacher.

As someone who sat in on a kindergarten class, I can tell you. All the kids open an app to have a book read to them, or realistic they just flip through at lightning speed to earn avatar stars. The below level kids are supposed to drill and practice sounds, so then you have a bunch of kids talking to their screens, holding their hands over their ears, getting mad because their ipad can't distinguish between their sounds and their tablemates', and then of course you have 3-4 of kids just randomly taking screenshots of dogs and taking pictures of their chair or desk or friend.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I also wish teachers went back to blackboard and chalk instead of PowerPoint, smart boards and dry erase boards. The contrast of the blackboard and chalk is easier to view and it is multi sensorial. This is an interesting article about the education benefits of a chalkboard- while I wouldn’t have been able to articulate this myself, it makes perfect sense to how I feel about it. While it’s geared toward college students- I think it is relevant to elementary as well

https://compasspubindonesia.com/blogs/2025/11/17/why-teaching-with-chalk-and-blackboard-is-more-effective/

Totally agree. There was also a study about how college students that took notes with own and paper instead of a laptop learned more.

Reducing edtech in schools is an important fight. No parent should have to worry about their kid being exposed to porn at school from another kid's school issued device, not to mention being forced to constantly use a distracting Internet connected device when they are supposed to be learning. Parents should not give up.

Teacher here and I am not sure why a dry erase board is worse than a chalkboard. I use my tv as a digital chalkboard. I have an iPad that I write that is screen mirrored to the tv. As I write all the kindergartners can see proper letter formation as I write without my body blocking their view. I can also always face the kids and correct their hand writing as we go because I don’t turn my back on them. I don’t use it for slide decks, books or any other tech except movement videos/ brain breaks. Can you explain why this isn’t an improvement over a chalk board.

It is pretty clear after you bother to do some basic research, which you are clearly not interested in given you didn't even bother to read the article

Did you read it? The first picture under the title is a kid on a dry erase board. The article never mentions dry erase boards va chalk boards. Only you did that. So you can continue to yell that no one is reading the article, but you aren’t understanding much about your position or the article.

Chalkboards are have an advantage over whiteboards because there is more contrast so it is easier on people's eyes.

Not having the screen in the classroom is better than having it in the classroom because it means kids aren't watching videos (like the "brain breaks") at schools every day. Screens are addictive, kids know what they can do, and that is distracting. It sounds like it barely adds any value to your classroom anyway. Use the money to send home actual books

Chalkboards also have chalk and dust that some people are allergic to. My second grade teacher couldn’t touch the stuff. We used a lot of overheads in the 80s so teachers could write in color when highlighting and underlining etc. It wasn’t addictive. White boards aren’t addictive and even my color blind kid can read the white board colors.

No, I can’t just order books. Teachers are not able to control the budget of the school with the 50 bucks the PTA gives them.

You are stuck in the mindset that schools need to be the fix for societal issues once again. If screens are so instantly addictive why are you participating in online forums and using your phone/device to do so?

Screens being addictive is actually not the main problem of EdTech. The problem is literally that it is ineffective at teaching. Kids need to be reading books, writing, taking notes, organizing words, thoughts, numbers on paper. The teacher need to be giving direct instruction in class, not slides and Quizlet, Gimkit stuff.

+1. It’s like they completely forgot how to teach!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I also wish teachers went back to blackboard and chalk instead of PowerPoint, smart boards and dry erase boards. The contrast of the blackboard and chalk is easier to view and it is multi sensorial. This is an interesting article about the education benefits of a chalkboard- while I wouldn’t have been able to articulate this myself, it makes perfect sense to how I feel about it. While it’s geared toward college students- I think it is relevant to elementary as well

https://compasspubindonesia.com/blogs/2025/11/17/why-teaching-with-chalk-and-blackboard-is-more-effective/

Totally agree. There was also a study about how college students that took notes with own and paper instead of a laptop learned more.

Reducing edtech in schools is an important fight. No parent should have to worry about their kid being exposed to porn at school from another kid's school issued device, not to mention being forced to constantly use a distracting Internet connected device when they are supposed to be learning. Parents should not give up.

Teacher here and I am not sure why a dry erase board is worse than a chalkboard. I use my tv as a digital chalkboard. I have an iPad that I write that is screen mirrored to the tv. As I write all the kindergartners can see proper letter formation as I write without my body blocking their view. I can also always face the kids and correct their hand writing as we go because I don’t turn my back on them. I don’t use it for slide decks, books or any other tech except movement videos/ brain breaks. Can you explain why this isn’t an improvement over a chalk board.

It is pretty clear after you bother to do some basic research, which you are clearly not interested in given you didn't even bother to read the article

Did you read it? The first picture under the title is a kid on a dry erase board. The article never mentions dry erase boards va chalk boards. Only you did that. So you can continue to yell that no one is reading the article, but you aren’t understanding much about your position or the article.

Chalkboards are have an advantage over whiteboards because there is more contrast so it is easier on people's eyes.

Not having the screen in the classroom is better than having it in the classroom because it means kids aren't watching videos (like the "brain breaks") at schools every day. Screens are addictive, kids know what they can do, and that is distracting. It sounds like it barely adds any value to your classroom anyway. Use the money to send home actual books

Chalkboards also have chalk and dust that some people are allergic to. My second grade teacher couldn’t touch the stuff. We used a lot of overheads in the 80s so teachers could write in color when highlighting and underlining etc. It wasn’t addictive. White boards aren’t addictive and even my color blind kid can read the white board colors.

No, I can’t just order books. Teachers are not able to control the budget of the school with the 50 bucks the PTA gives them.

You are stuck in the mindset that schools need to be the fix for societal issues once again. If screens are so instantly addictive why are you participating in online forums and using your phone/device to do so?

Screens being addictive is actually not the main problem of EdTech. The problem is literally that it is ineffective at teaching. Kids need to be reading books, writing, taking notes, organizing words, thoughts, numbers on paper. The teacher need to be giving direct instruction in class, not slides and Quizlet, Gimkit stuff.

+1. It’s like they completely forgot how to teach!

The teachers coming out of ED school now are taught to teach using iPads and apps. They literally do not know how to teach without “technology tools.” They haven’t been taught.

[Anonymous]

I think parents also forget that a lot of this stricter, more regimented curriculum can about because it wasn’t fair that some kids got a good teacher and some kids got a bad one, so at least by regimenting the curriculum so strictly, the harm from the “bad” teacher is diminished. It is my understanding that this was the main purpose of the county making and distributing all the ed materials - so that people couldn’t claim some schools or teachers were “better” than others. The county can say “nope, they all teach exactly the same thing!”

Think all the ed tech is an unintended consequence of this. It also saves the county money if they don’t need extra teachers to do reading and math pullout groups. Not saying any of this is good or right, just trying to explain how we got here.

[Anonymous]

Lexia is an excellent, science-backed supplemental tool that builds reading/phonics skills.

It’s not meant to replace teaching and It’s not as great as 1:1 for remediation but it’s still beneficial in some ways to most kids.

Same for a lot of the other tools. Great ways to supplement teaching and get extra practice.

It’s not an all or nothing situation.