Bend Parents Urge School District to Reassess Reliance on Screens in Education

A coalition of concerned parents have created a sign-on letter/petition--now nearing 1,000 signatures--urging Bend-La Pine Schools to reevaluate the District's increasing reliance on iPads, educational technology apps and now Generative AI to deliver education to our students. Well Wired supports and endorses this letter. This is not an anti-tech movement, nor a parents vs. school movement. This is pro child development, pro teacher/student relationship, and pro child mental health, and was created by a coalition of informed parents, including those who work in mental health and tech and who see the challenges of our growing reliance on screens in education. This letter asks the School Board for an updated, intentional, science-backed approach to classroom technology with the whole child in mind.

Want to get involved? Cool! Please do any of the following:

1. Spread the word. Please share the link, post it on social media, etc. The letter will close on Feb 10th at 12pm. Link: https://forms.gle/jTUPMXgM1sFx3mAGA

2. Share your story. If you have a personal story of iPad misuse or specific concerns about your child's or school's tech use in Bend-La Pine schools, please email your concern to the School Board listening post prior to Feb 10th via this email: school-board@bend.k12.or.us This is an approved channel for providing feedback, and the more the School Board hears about the problems, the more energy they will put into finding solutions. Your email doesn't have to be long to be effective. 

3. Attend the school board meeting. February 10th @ 5:30pm. BLPS Education Center, 520 NW Wall Street, Bend. The letter will be presented to the School Board at this meeting and having concerned parents present will help! You don't need to sign up for public comment to attend.

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Btw, we're not the only ones advocating for healthy tech in classrooms....

Last week, legislators in Vermont introduced a bill giving parents the legal right to opt out of school issued devices. Chicago Public Schools already allows parents to opt out of AI in their child's classrooms. Parents in LA Unified Schools are pushing for an opt-in requirement. 

School districts across the country and the globe are reconsidering the role of technology in the classroom based on declining test scores and better understanding of risks and tradeoffs of digitizing education, such as distraction, shallow engagement and fragmented attention. For example: See this story about a middle school that eliminated their one-to-one tablet program in December, this story about legislative efforts to enact a moratorium on student facing GenAI in K-8 classrooms in New York for two years until further study (with CA following its lead), and this story about a school board in NC that passed a resolution to encourage reduced screen use in classrooms.

Please sign the letter if you agree and share! The letter will be shared at the February 10 school board meeting.