“They tend to turn to technology and away from the playground.”
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — A “letter of concern” from 135 medical experts was presented to the Bend La Pine School Board Tuesday night, raising concerns about the use, overuse or misuse of potentially addictive technology in schools, particularly in classrooms.
Technology-based learning, which has been on the rise for decades, has become even more important during the pandemic, but parents and doctors worry it's being overused.
“We're not really retreating, and that's harmful,” said Ami Formica, co-founder of healthy tech advocacy group Well Wired. “Now it's hurting kids' development, their personal growth, their connections, and the educational environment for kids.”
The letter to board members urged them to reconsider technology use in schools.
“Judging by the district's response, they seem open to an offer of collaboration,” Formica said. “They've mentioned a working group that we would love to be a part of, and hopefully would include representatives from the health care community.”
In a statement, Bend La Pine Schools' IT director said the district shares experts' concerns, which is why it implemented the restrictions on cellphone use.
“People who work with children are seeing an increase in these issues and are understandably concerned,” said child psychologist Dr. Wendy Laakman, who spoke to the board.
A major concern is the addictive overuse of technology in classrooms, especially in the early grades. Advocates of device control worry that devices can limit learning comprehension.
“I was surprised that more emphasis was not placed on presenting the letter from our health care providers at last night's meeting,” Formica said.
Bend La Pine schools are considering changes for the 2024-25 school year, including limiting device use for students in kindergarten through second grade. They are also considering restricting access to social media such as YouTube and limiting the amount of time students can use apps to the length of school hours.
“There's a lot of concern about how it's affecting our mental health, that we're raising our kids to be dependent on these things, and rates of anxiety, depression and ADHD are rising,” Laakman said.
“Kids prefer electronic devices over interacting with their friends because they are highly addictive,” she says, “so when kids have a choice, they often turn to technology and stay away from playgrounds.”
WellWired said it surveyed 1,000 parents and found that 93% of parents surveyed in Bend La Pine schools strongly supported “no cell phone school” policies due to mental health risks. According to Mental Health America, Oregon will rank 50th out of 50 states in 2023 for youth mental health.
