As I campaign for the Dysart Unified School District Governing Board, one issue I continue to hear from parents and teachers is concern over how much time our youngest students spend on screens. While technology certainly has a place in education, I believe it is time to seriously reconsider the use of Chromebooks in kindergarten through third grade classrooms. At a minimum, their use should be significantly limited during these critical early learning years.
At those young ages, children should be learning the fundamentals: reading, writing, critical thinking, social interaction, and problem-solving. These skills are built through human interaction, repetition, creativity, and hands-on learning — not through screens and artificial intelligence programs.
There is growing evidence that excessive screen time can negatively impact children’s attention spans, sleep habits, emotional development, and even academic performance. Many parents already struggle to limit screen exposure at home because children are surrounded by devices everywhere they go. Schools should not contribute even more screen dependency during the most formative years of childhood.
One of the greatest losses in modern education has been the decline of handwriting. Many people learn and retain information through the physical act of writing things down. Taking notes by hand activates parts of the brain connected to comprehension and memory in ways typing simply does not. When young students rely primarily on Chromebooks, they miss opportunities to strengthen fine motor skills, spelling, memory retention, and focus.
I remember being taught in school that if you wanted to remember something, you needed to write it down yourself. There was value in slowing down, forming letters, and engaging directly with the material. Today, many students type everything, auto-correct fixes their mistakes, and information is instantly searchable. But convenience does not always equal learning.
That said, I also understand reality. Arizona’s state testing is completed online. Students absolutely need to develop basic computer literacy skills so they can successfully navigate those tests and function in today’s world. Technology is not going away, nor should it. However, there is a major difference between teaching children basic computer skills and making screens the centerpiece of early education.
I believe Dysart should move toward a balanced approach. In the early grades, classrooms should prioritize books, handwriting, face-to-face instruction, classroom discussion, and hands-on learning activities. Limited and purposeful technology use can still exist without allowing Chromebooks to dominate the school day.
Artificial intelligence and advanced technology will shape the future, but our youngest students first need strong foundations rooted in human learning. Before we teach children how to interact with machines, we must ensure they know how to think, communicate, read, write, and solve problems on their own.
