When every child has a screen: rethinking 1:1 technology

May 13, 2026 - 02:13

I spent a decade teaching in the Knox County school system. Now I am a mother watching my own child go through the same district. I taught during COVID and the year after, when we rolled out 1:1 technology for every student. At the time, it felt like the right call. We needed to keep kids learning when they could not be in the room with us. Laptops and tablets were a lifeline.

But now, years later, I am not so sure. The screens stayed long after the pandemic faded. My child comes home with tired eyes and a short attention span. Homework that used to be a worksheet on paper is now a glowing assignment on a Chromebook. Teachers lean on the devices because they are there. They are easy. They keep students quiet and busy.

I remember teaching in a classroom with a chalkboard and a stack of books. Kids talked to each other. They fidgeted with pencils and passed notes. They looked at me when I spoke. Now they look at a screen. Even in kindergarten, children are handed a tablet. They swipe before they write. They type before they hold a pencil.

I am not against technology. It has a place. But we handed every child a screen without asking what we were losing. We traded conversation for silence. We traded focus for constant notifications. We traded the messy, human work of learning for a smooth, digital experience.

As a parent, I see the cost. My child struggles to read a book without checking for a message. She cannot sit through a meal without asking for a game. I wonder if we did this too fast. I wonder if we can take it back. I do not have the answer. But I know the question matters.