Hillsborough County Public Schools in Florida is pulling younger students away from classroom laptops by capping screen time and removing major digital learning platforms from daily lessons starting this school year.
Restoring Balance
District leaders say the move aims to reclaim lost instructional hours and restore a healthy balance between modern technology and traditional learning. Programs such as i-Ready and Amira will no longer be part of daily instruction for kindergarten through second grade.
Instead, students will spend more time reading printed books, writing, participating in classroom discussions, and engaging in hands-on learning activities. Executive Director of Elementary Education Sarah Garcia said that when schools returned to in-person instruction after 2020, classrooms failed to course-correct away from a heavy reliance on individual devices.
Garcia emphasized that technology is not being eliminated from classrooms altogether. Devices will be used more intentionally and only when they support specific educational goals. The district also wants to limit screen time to account for the amount of technology many students already use outside of school.
Parental Support
Some parents, including local mother Sara Healy, support the district’s efforts to find a better balance between technology and traditional learning. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends less than two hours of screen time per day.
Original reporting: Tampa Bay Florida News (HLL/CB) — read the source article.
