Do you support or oppose with LAUSD’s new plan to limit classroom screen time?

Support (84%) – "As a teacher, I have seen the decline in critical thinking when students use a computer rather than paper and pencils. It's a move in the right direction. Kids need to rely on their critical thinking and not AI."

• "We have enough data! The abundance of screen time has not made students smarter, but has encouraged them to stop thinking. Additionally, rates of depression and anxiety have skyrocketed with a known correlation to app addiction. Your headline summed it up. Let's press pause!"

"The devices are intentionally designed to be addictive - and they are. As with any addiction, screen time has to be managed and limited to avoid serious harm. Children love candy, too - but no one would recommend candy bars for mealtime. Physical activity and energetic play are also essential components of the elementary school experience. Classrooms full of sedentary children staring at screens would be a dystopian nightmare."

• "Tech CEOs don’t allow their children to have personal screens until they are 15-16 years old. They know the negative health impacts that screens have on a child’s mind. The same should be for the rest of America’s youth. “Wait until 8th” and the very earliest."

"As a high school teacher, I see the detrimental effects of too much screen time. Many of my students will not talk to their peers if they are given the option to have a screen open. When I give paper assignments I see much more collaboration and interaction. I also see significantly less plagiarism with paper assignments. Students will use AI on even the most creatively designed online assignments, so forcing them to think for themselves is important to foster those critical skills."

• "Anything to get people out into life more since the lies of the online world are only increasing and causing different mental-health issues. Most of my generation doesn't know how to operate without either social media or a phone, myself included though I try otherwise. If the screen issues that I struggle with can be aided in younger generations, I encourage it."

"As a veteran educator, I have watched the detrimental impacts of screen time on my students first-hand. Students have changed and screens might only be part of the equation, but it is an important contributor that cannot be ignored. Of course we need to teach students to use tech wisely so that we can all coexist and, hopefully, thrive in our increasingly digital world, but students need to have foundational skills beforehand. We also need to take time as a society to prioritize the humane development of technology rather than focusing on the financial gain."

• "I think it's even more critical with the advent of AI. Students still need to learn to read and write. If they're on laptops from kindergarten up, there's a good chance they'll learn how to use AI early, which could greatly inhibit their reading and writing skills. AI is frequently incorrect, and without basic learning and critical thinking skills, the next generations will not know how to discern that."

Oppose (6%) – "While I understand why they made this decision, it is counter to the technology dependent world that we live in and which we need to prepare our kids. I also worry about how they will engage students in the early grades in absence of technology. Play-based learning is critical in those grades but many schools replaced traditional toys (kitchen sets, blocks, etc) with technology. In removing technology, will they bring back learning toys? Student engagement is a huge issue plaguing classrooms and teachers in the district need to find a way to engage students."

Unsure/other (10%) – "Today's students are digital natives. They have been using technology, for the most part, since they were toddlers. What is missing is teaching them how to think about solutions WITHOUT the use of technology. That's the reason to go back to some pen and paper learning. The combination of both will result in students who are truly ready for whatever the future offers."