Restricting Screen Time in the Elementary

At the beginning of the last school year, the Board of Directors asked to consider a policy that would restrict or ban the use of cell phones in our school district. During that fall term, we gathered community and family input then crafted a policy that was ready for board action right before Christmas break. We found the feedback to be incredibly diverse, with some parents in favor of very strong and strict regulations, where others had views representing the polar opposite.

It was right around that time we learned the governor was planning to introduce legislation on this very topic for the upcoming legislative session. So we tabled action. Ultimately, legislation was passed requiring school districts to adopt policies restricting cell phones during the school year. Our policy was subsequently adopted and went into effect at the start of the current school year. 

To remind you our policy does not outright ban these devices, (with the exception being elementary and middle school) but instead restricts when they can be used. There was quite a bit of debate at the time as to whether or not high school students should be allowed to use devices between classes or at lunch. We erred on the side of allowing them. While we are not currently debating an amendment to the policy, many school districts are. 

School districts aren't the only ones who are currently considering further limits to screen time. In last week's column, we discussed some of the provisions and amendments that are included in HF2676 AKA, the governor's Make America Healthy Again bill. You'll recall my description of this bill as a 'Christmas Tree' bill because of all the amendments that were attached to it. In my staff bulletin for that week, I think I described it as a frankenstein bill. One of the amendments that I didn't get to, simply due to lack of space is included in Division VII of the bill: 'Student Instructional Technology Standards'. 

This section of the bill aims to limit screen time in the elementary school to no more than 60 minutes per day. I actually have some mixed feelings about this proposal. On one hand, it makes a ton of sense, particularly when squared with the research and the work that Jonathan Haidt continues to advance. Truth be told, when we were debating our own policies, it didn't take long to circle back to this idea that it didn't make a whole lot of sense to restrict cell phones if all students needed to do is open up an iPad to scroll through social media. Good point.

'they called it progress'
click the picture to view
the video on YouTube

The challenge to the proposal is the enormous investment that we have made, not only in the hardware: but software. Physical textbooks are quickly becoming a thing of the past. When I first started in this job, whenever we went through a curriculum adoption the books, assessment packages, and accommodations manual were the 'thing' we purchased. The vendor would 'throw in' a copy of the online material at no extra charge. In those days, most schools were still operating stand alone computer labs so the idea of online textbooks was novel. So then, sometime in July, a truck would show up and unload several pallets of the new stuff. Today, the material is primarily online and they will throw in a set of classroom set of physical textbooks at no cost. No doubt the complete opposite of they way curricular material was procured an the onset of my career. 

Granted a lot of this is more geared toward middle school level and beyond. We still have ample material in our elementary that is physical, consumable textbooks. But our intervention system is not. It may be a difficult needle to thread, but is it worth threading? Probably so. One of the parts of this proposal I can definitely get behind: a complete prohibition of the device at recess!

Finally, as I was considering the content of today's column I stumbled across the video at the left in my LinkedIn feed. It really illustrates how ubiquitous technology has become in the lives of our young people and asks us to consider the price we are paying for progress. Simply click the picture and it should take you to the video. It's both a bit funny, and kind of sad at the same time. 

Time as a Resource

About a month ago I published a piece titled 'Newton's Law of Motion'. In that article, my focal point was property tax reform. We discussed the idea that if we reduce one side of the budget ledger, we have to reduce the opposite side of the ledger an equal amount or risk a spending deficit. Sounds simple in theory. In fact, on the revenue side it probably is. Reduce income by $200,000? Ok, done (not really, but hang with me a minute). The challenge comes when you have to balance that reduction out on the expenditure side of the ledger. Turning theory to practice becomes a much steeper hill to climb. Human nature would suggest everyone is in favor or reducing the expenditure side of the ledger: until it impacts a program or initiative that is near and dear to their own hearts. Exhibit 'A': Just turn on the local news tonight and watch the story about any business, school, local government that is cutting costs. 

In any event, I digress. Today isn't about budget cuts or property tax reform. It's about time. In my annual convocation address I always make the point that we only have 178 days of student instruction. We need to make them count. Over the course of the school year that clock continues to run, as do my narration of reminders, for example: The 100th day of school (on the day this is being written it is actually the 132nd day)! Or, in my message right after we return from spring break: We are now in the final stretch of the school year, starting our second week of the final quarter of the school year. I do this not to wish away the days with a longing for the warm relaxation of summer break, but to create a sense of urgency. Our principals are focused on teacher pacing. Are they hitting all the benchmarks? Will they finish their curriculum in time? Teachers are focused on just one more chance to move the needle on student achievement for their students.

One could probably argue that time is our most valuable commodity or resource; surpassing even financial effort. After all, we can replenish our revenue. We can find ways to bolster income streams. The one thing we cannot do is turn back time. Once today is gone, it's gone forever. We'll never get it back so it is incumbent on us to use our days and our time wisely. 

Have you ever heard the quote, 'show me your budget and I'll tell you what you value?' I think that is a fair statement. I'll change it a bit though: 'show me your schedule and I'll tell you what you value'. In case you are curious, our daily schedule is 405 minutes of complex collaboration across 3 attendance centers. It is balanced in such a way that changing one component of the schedule at the high school can have a ripple effect across the district, which could ultimately impact when kindergarten has music class. Now, if you were to look at that kindergarten schedule, or any elementary classroom schedule for that matter it would become pretty evident what is valued most in our daily allotment of 405 minutes. Literacy instruction. I'm sure you've heard me say this before. The most important thing that happens in elementary school is that we teach kids how to read. Full stop. Without the ability to read, you cannot function in society. Our schedule reflects that value. The investment we have made in teacher training reflects that value. 

We obviously can't forget about other subjects and content areas. Those too are both important, and required. Math is a close second. Now, it probably wouldn't be fair to rank the remainder of the content because at this point bias begins to enter the picture. Personally, I might rank music higher for example than some other content. That's not really the point. The point is that we have to fit all of those other content areas into our 405 daily minutes. Not just because they are required by the Chapter 12 accreditation standards, but also to ensure that we are turning out well rounded citizen problem solvers. 

There is constant stress on the schedule not just during the annual exercise of negotiation among building principals for time, but on vendors who would like to sell or add just one more program to our already packed daily regimen. They have just the trick, strategy, or program to solve whatever problem ails us. All we need is just a bit of time in the schedule. Or, (and I'm finally getting to the point here today) the legislature adds one more requirement to the schedule. We have to ask, at what cost? And I'm not necessarily talking about the financial implication (of which there almost always undoubtedly is).

So we finally arrive at the point of today's missive. HF2676, aptly named the governor's MAHA (Make America Healthy Again) bill. It has had more amendments added to it that ornaments on a Christmas tree. Now, the bill has some good stuff in it. Even the amendments that aren't so great come from a position of genuine desire to improve the health of our youth. The trouble is Newton's Law of Motion. Let me explain. Perhaps the most problematic of amendments is a new physical education requirement. Under this proposal, students in grades 1-8 would be required to take 30 minutes of PE each day and complete the presidential fitness test. In addition, students in grades K-8 would be required to have 120 minutes of physical activity each week that is not PE (in other words, recess). At the high school, students in grades 9-12 would be required to participate in an extra or co-curricular activity as a condition of graduation. For starters, it would undoubtedly require additional staff. Assuming we have the financial capacity to staff the program might be the easy part.

We have 405 minutes a day. Those minutes are finite. If we add anything to the schedule, anything; it will mean that we have to take those minutes away from somewhere else.