One of the richest men in the world castigates the billions of dollars spent
on buying laptops for US classrooms with no apparent improvements

Date:
Tue, 25 Mar 2025 21:09:00 +0000

Description:
Billions spent on school laptops have failed to improve student performance, raising concerns about the effectiveness of widespread digital adoption in classrooms.

FULL STORY

Laptops are now common in American classrooms, with nearly 90% of schools providing devices to modernize education and prepare students for a digital future.

However, Michael R. Bloomberg, one of the world's wealthiest and most influential figures as the founder and majority owner of Bloomberg LP, has argued the billions spent on these laptops for students have failed to
improve academics, shifting focus from traditional learning and raising concerns about declining outcomes.

As someone who built a company by developing a computer at the dawn of the digital age, I never believed that computers in the classroom were the cure
to what ails schools," said Bloomberg.

Picking up books and pens -- A call to rethink laptop use in classrooms

"Some of the most powerful educational interactions occur when a caring, well-trained teacher can look into a students eyes and help them see and understand new ideas," he went on. "Machines often dont have that power."

Bloomberg argues instead of increasing reliance on screens, schools should encourage students to spend more time reading, writing, and engaging in
direct interactions with teachers and peers.

Laptops for teachers can enhance instruction, but Bloomberg acknowledges
that, while student laptops can be useful tools, they cannot replace the
value of a well-trained educator guiding students through meaningful learning experiences.

Studies show excessive laptop use in classrooms leads to distraction, with students often taking up to 20 minutes to refocus after engaging in non-academic activities.

Despite widespread laptop use, only 28% of eighth graders and 24% of 12th graders are proficient in math, while reading scores remain low, and US students continue to lag behind their international peers, raising doubts
about the effectiveness of widespread laptop adoption in schools.

While the best laptop for engineering students can support advanced computations and specialized software, excessive screen time in general education has not translated into improved academic performance.

A post-pandemic survey found over 25% of students spend at least five hours
of classroom time daily on screens, often engaging in educational games that fail to build mastery. In contrast, time-tested methods like reading physical books and writing by hand have been shown to improve retention and comprehension.

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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/pro/one-of-the-richest-men-in-the-world-castigates-t he-billions-of-dollars-spent-on-buying-laptops-for-us-classrooms-with-no-appar ent-improvements

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A post-pandemic survey found over 25% of students spend at least five hours of classroom time daily on screens, often engaging in educational games that fail to build mastery. In contrast, time-tested methods like reading physical books and writing by hand have been shown to improve retention and comprehension.

I like this article. My kid's highschool has gone 100% Chromebook, meaning there are no more textbooks. I don't like it. It's bad for their eyes, it's a bad idea to send kids walking the streets with millions of dollars worth of computers, it's bad that schools are making big deals with big tech companies, it's more convenient to read textbooks, there's password issues, there's privacy concerns, and the list of things wrong with it is a mile long.

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Mike Powell wrote to All <=-

"Some of the most powerful educational interactions occur when a
caring, well-trained teacher can look into a students eyes and help
them see and understand new ideas," he went on. "Machines often dont
have that power."

He must be calling on his experiences in public school.

Laptops for teachers can enhance instruction, but Bloomberg
acknowledges that, while student laptops can be useful tools, they
cannot replace the value of a well-trained educator guiding students through meaningful learning experiences.

How many students in a classroom can a teacher provide meaningful
experiences on a daily basis - 25? 30? 35?

Studies show excessive laptop use in classrooms leads to distraction,
with students often taking up to 20 minutes to refocus after engaging
in non-academic activities.

That's a discipline problem, not a laptop problem. Kids will find all
sorts of ways to distract themselves. I preferred passing notes,
myself.

Despite widespread laptop use, only 28% of eighth graders and 24% of
12th graders are proficient in math, while reading scores remain low,
and US students continue to lag behind their international peers,
raising doubts about the effectiveness of widespread laptop adoption in schools.

Correlation does not imply causation. This merits more research.

A post-pandemic survey found over 25% of students spend at least five hours of classroom time daily on screens, often engaging in educational games that fail to build mastery. In contrast, time-tested methods like reading physical books and writing by hand have been shown to improve retention and comprehension.

That I can agree with.


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Aaron Thomas wrote to Mike Powell <=-

I like this article. My kid's highschool has gone 100% Chromebook,
meaning there are no more textbooks. I don't like it. It's bad for
their eyes, it's a bad idea to send kids walking the streets with
millions of dollars worth of computers, it's bad that schools are
making big deals with big tech companies, it's more convenient to read textbooks, there's password issues, there's privacy concerns, and the
list of things wrong with it is a mile long.

As bad as they are, requiring parents to buy iPads (like my daughter's
private school does) is worse. Less controls, more ability to circumvent
the controls that do exist, and seamless messaging during class.

Kids are all apple, and they can iMessage from their iPads. At least
when she had a Chromebook, they had to jump through a couple of hoops to
talk during class.

iPads and iPhones now randomize the MAC address, making it difficult to
control how kids use the network. I'm going to have to make a second
wifi network for the kids, put all the controls there, and change the
other wifi password at home.





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list of things wrong with it is a mile long.

As bad as they are, requiring parents to buy iPads (like my daughter's private school does) is worse. Less controls, more ability to circumvent the controls that do exist, and seamless messaging during class.

A private school sounds good. There's not much BS that you will put up with while you're paying for that, am I right?

I can't demand anything from the public schools. They dictate everything.

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