"Which computer should we buy?," asked the school administrators.
"How are you planning to use the computers?," said the Apple sales rep.
The administrators didn't know. But technology was "the future" back then, and they had grant money to spend and surely it would all work out.
The edtech revolution has failed, argues neuroscientist Jared Cooney Horvath on After Babel. The U.S. spends more than $30 billion annually on edtech, which he defines as internet-connected devices including "computers, laptops, tablets, cell phones and smart watches." It's hurting students' ability to focus and learn.
There's lots of research in the U.S. and around the world on the effects of computer use in school, he writes. It's a distraction, and distraction undercuts learning.
"When using a computer for homework, students typically last fewer than 6 minutes before accessing social media, messaging friends, and engaging with other digital distractions," Horvath writes. "When using a laptop during class, students typically spend 38 minutes of every hour off-task."
Researchers paid students to focus on a 20-minute computerized lesson, he writes. "Nearly 40% of students were unable to stop themselves from multitasking."
He imagines asking a group of non-drinkers to use a jug of beer to learn about buoyancy. the beer would be a useful learning tool. But not for alcoholics.
"Even before digital devices took over the classroom, students struggled with lack of attention, shallow thinking, overconfidence, and other learning problems," he writes. However, adopting "distraction machines" has made it much worse.
Computers significantly reduce learning, the OECD concludes after a three-year analysis of international data. However, digital technology "is linked to better student performance…when computer software and internet connections help to increase study time and practice.”
Horvath rephrases: "Learning improves when students spend more time learning."
No kidding, he writes. "When used to increase study time and practice, literally any tool will improve student performance." But computers and tablets don't lead to increased learning time. "They are at least as likely to increase time spent on video games, video watching, social media, and listening to music."
Schools in European and Southeast Asian countries are reducing the reliance on digital devices in the classroom, writes Horvath.
In a New York Times column, Jessica Grose also argues that the harm outweighs the benefits.
Students go online to find age-inappropriate clips, evading the school's barriers. Even very young children read "almost exclusively on iPads," even though readers understand more reading a physical book.
“It seems to be a constant battle between fighting for the students’ active attention (because their brains are now hard-wired for the instant gratification of TikTok and YouTube videos) and making sure they aren’t going to sites outside of the dozens they should be,” wrote Nicole Post, a Missouri elementary teacher, told Grose.
The money spent on laptops, software and IT staffing could be sent on real, physical books, Grose writes.
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