It wasn’t that long ago that school districts everywhere were bragging about their one-to-one programs, giving every student a computer or tablet or some other kind of digital device. But now many parents, including a lot of parents in Oak Park, are expressing concerns about how much time their kids are looking at screens in school and are calling for the school district to restrict or even eliminate the use of digital devices in schools, especially elementary schools. As of Monday afternoon 1,242, people have signed a Change.org petition calling for Oak Park Elementary District 97 to reevaluate screen time in schools.
At the two most recent District 97 school board meetings a number of parents, and a teacher, expressed concerns that kids are staring at screens too much in school while addressing the school board during the public comment period.
And it is clear that school officials are listening and beginning to adapt district policies. Michael Arensdorff, District 97’s top technology officer, said the district is working to find the right balance and is focused on limiting the use of the devices to educational pursuits.
“Kids learn better without devices and as a district we need to reduce our dependence on screens and individual devices and better support our teachers to do what they do best, to teach each and every one of the kids in their classrooms, not manage devices,” said Keri Lucas. She’s the mother of a kindergartener and fourth grader at Mann School as well as a freshman at Oak Park and River Forest High School and spoke at the April 28 school board meeting.
In District 97 elementary schools all students, including kindergartners, are given iPads while middle school students are given Chromebooks. District 97 rolled out its one-to-one program in the 2014-15 school year but at that time only third through fifth graders were given iPads. But iPads were given to kindergartners through second grades during the pandemic 2020-21 school year, a policy that remains in effect.
Parents who are actively trying to limit or prohibit screen time at home for their young children object to students being expected to take their device home most every day. They say their efforts to create a digital device free home are being undermined.
“The school tablet coming home creates an incursion and an unwanted device in our home,” said Hillary Spencer, the mother of a Hatch School first grader. “We put it away but it creates an extra step.”
Lauren Johnson, the mother of two boys, a fifth grader and third grader who attend Lincoln School, created the organization ScreenSenseOakPark which started the petition. Johnson says the iPads her sons have get in the way of the normal activities of childhood.
“Students are not allowed to stay and play on the playground after school because, we have been told, they need to take their bags home so that their iPads don’t get stolen,” Johnson said.
Amanda Crockett, the mother of a kindergartner at Irving School, said she was surprised by how much time her kindergartner spends on his iPad at school.
“The amount of screen time my five year old gets at school has been incredibly disappointing,” Crockett said at the April 28 school board meeting.
“He gets excited about music class not because what he is learning about music but because he gets to watch YouTube,” Crockett said. “He doesn’t watch YouTube at home.”
Crockett, who noted the irony that during her public comment she was referring to notes written on her smart phone, said that too many videos are used in her son’s kindergarten class.
“Why are videos being used instead of human contact, when there’s so much research that shows human contact is where kids thrive,” Crockett said.
Recently published books such as The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness by Jonanthan Haidt have raised serious concerns about the impact of children’s use of digital devices.
“The research in this area is clear,” Brenna Connor, the mother of a Mann School first grader, said in a public comment at the April 14 school board meeting. “Excessive screen time injures cognitive development, reduces memory retention, impedes social development and is linked to increased anxiety and depression among young users.”
Johnson and Connor and some other parents have spoken directly to teachers, principals and administrators about their concerns. They would like District 97, as a first step, to adopt an opt-in policy where families would have to opt in to allow their student to have an individual device to take home.
“This is something that we are looking at and I would say right now, more information to come for what that looks like in 26-27,” said D97’s Arensdorff, who has met with some of the concerned parents.
Principals at Mann and Irving Schools have already taken action to limit screen time in response to parental concerns. Conner asked that students not be allowed to use their iPad during free time or indoor recess and Mann School Principal Hussain Ali has, according to Connor, implemented that new policy which has disappointed Connor’s daughter who does not know her mother was behind the change.
Susan Mura, the principal of Irving School, has also recently notified parents of a change in policy.
“While these devices are powerful tools, we believe it is our collective responsibility to help students develop healthy technology habits. To support this, we are refining our expectations regarding when devices are used. Starting Monday, iPads are to be used only with explicit teacher permission. This means students should not be using their iPads during free time or indoor recess. Additionally, during “transition times” (such as arrival, dismissal, or while waiting in the office or auditorium) devices should remain safely in backpacks. By prioritizing face-to-face interaction during these times, we help our students stay present and engaged with one another.”
Amanda Siegfried, District 97’s spokesperson, said she and other district officials have been impressed by the knowledge and thoroughness of the parents who have raised issues about screen time and devices.
“We think all concerns are valid,” Siegfried said. “We really appreciate the thoughtful feedback.”
Johnson is happy district officials are taking the concerns seriously.
“I think they’ve been extremely collaborative,” Johnson said. “I think it’s been really positive that they’ve been excited to share with us some of the changes that they already had in the works, they’ve been receptive to hearing about what our goals and priorities are as a community organization. I think we’re going to have some really nice ongoing collaboration.”
Connor agreed.
“I’m optimistic that there can be some meaningful changes made for some of these use cases where children are using these devices what it’s not connected to learning,” Connor said. “There’s a real opportunity loss for that time when they could be engaging in peer to peer social interaction, they could be reading a physical book, they could be, depending on the grade level, writing a story or practicing their handwriting and these activities are much more meaningful and much more enriching than time spent on a gamified app that’s just giving them a quick dopamine hit.”
Johnson said while some in ScreenSenseOakPark would like to eliminate digital devices from elementary schools that is not their ask right now. She said there are a variety of views among those involved in ScreenSenseOakPark, an organization that she created in the last two months.
“We’re using these devices for a purpose and we’re very specific on the use that they have,” Arensdorff said. “Can we continue to get better and improve, yes we can.”
Alexis Blum, an art teacher at Percy Julian Middle School and a District 97 parent, says she experiences the challenges of kids and digital devices all day.
“I’ve been fighting this iPad battle and cellphones in the middle schools for years and I don’t know why,” Blum said during her public comment at the April 28 school board meeting. “I just don’t understand. I’ve never seen any research or data, anywhere, that says these things are good for learning.”
During a brief board discussion on the subject later in the meeting District 97 school board vice-president Jung Kim disagreed with that assessment.
“I cringe when people say there is no educational advantage to technology, that’s not true for people with disabilities,” Kim said.
Those pushing for limits on screen time say they recognize some students with disabilities can benefit from a device and say they are not trying to limit that and they support flexibility and exceptions in any policy.
Blum, like many of the other parents who spoke, says she tries to keep her home as screen free as she can for her kids but said it’s very hard with her two children who attend Whittier bringing home their school issued iPads every day.
“I’m fighting cell phones all day at my job, I’m fighting Chromebooks at my job and when I go home I have to battle my kids with a device I would have never bought them,” Blum said.