“It makes no sense to me,” Byock said. “We’ve banned the cellphones, but it doesn’t matter, because the kids are using the school-issued devices in exactly the same way.” … The discontent in Los Angeles Unified, the second-largest school district in the country, reflects a growing unease nationally about the amount of time children spend learning through screens in classrooms. While a majority of states prohibit children from using cellphones in class, 88% of schools provide students with personal devices, according to the National Center for Education Statistics, often Chromebook laptops or iPads.
The only metric electronic devices seem to deliver on is “engagement”. We’ve sacrificed fine motor skills and play for electronic devices. Nothing infuriates me more as a parent than “log onto X..” when centuries of education has be delivered via paper.
The last thing I’ll say here is watch the actions of the tech elite. They are enrolling their children in Montessori and Waldorf schooling that is deliberately screen free..
Quote Citation: Tyler Kingkade, “LA Parents say school-issued iPads and Chromebooks cause chaos”, Dec. 5, 2025, 5:00 AM EST, https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/rcna245624