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Vibe-coding with the kids
Preparing kids for the future can mean teaching them to use AI -- or showing them how to bike to the store on their own.

Joanne Jacobs
Jun 72 min read


Is tech 'abstinence' the answer? Screen time can be learning time
Is tech "abstinence" going too far?

Joanne Jacobs
May 262 min read


Screens off in LA schools: Will the anti-tech pendulum swing too far?
Los Angeles will ban Chromebooks and tablets for K-2 students and limit screen time for older students as the ed-tech backlash spreads.

Joanne Jacobs
May 182 min read


NYU students say 'Coddled' author is 'unsettling' graduation speaker
Jon Haidt told NYU graduates to "pay attention" and live in the real world. Some wanted him disinvited, saying his views are "unsettling" and he's not prestigious.

Joanne Jacobs
May 162 min read


Parents protect kids from 'real life' but let them roam freely online
American childhood is free-range online, supervised in real life.

Joanne Jacobs
May 131 min read


Go out and play: Take away the phones, and then what?
Kids need opportunities to play with friends in real life.

Joanne Jacobs
May 92 min read


Melania and the PlatoBot
Melania Trump is promoting robot teachers, but few think bots will replace humans in the classroom.

Joanne Jacobs
Mar 282 min read


Beware of silver bullets: Learning takes effort
Learning isn't natural. Teachers need to teach, not just "guide" or "nurture."

Joanne Jacobs
Mar 253 min read


It's a spaceship, it's a castle, it's an empty cardboard box
Children need time to play -- without supervision or screens.

Joanne Jacobs
Mar 141 min read


Screens in school: Don't 'gamify' kindergarten, say parents
Children are starting at screens in school, instead of listening to a teacher or interacting with friends, parents complain.

Joanne Jacobs
Mar 122 min read


Toys or tech?
Toy Story 5 pits a child's old toys with a new tablet that wants to monopolize her playtime.

Joanne Jacobs
Feb 221 min read


Amok time: Elementary kids' behavior is out of control, say teachers
Student misbehavior is way up, say kindergarten and first-grade teachers. More kids are unprepared to pay attention, cooperate and show respect to classmates and teachers.

Joanne Jacobs
Feb 213 min read


Parents say: Bring back pencil and paper
The anti-tech backlash is here: Parents are asking to opt their kids out of using school laptops and tablets.

Joanne Jacobs
Feb 182 min read


Bad for the brain: Kids are learning less in high-tech schools
The more time students spend on screens the less they learn, argues neuroscientist Jared Cooney Horvath.

Joanne Jacobs
Dec 7, 20252 min read


Devices are distractions: Take the tablets away
Internet-connected devices are distracting students -- not helping them learn.

Joanne Jacobs
Mar 25, 20252 min read


Go out and play: Preschools try to kick the screen habit
Young children are spending more time indoors looking at screens, less time in nature , writes Karen D'Souza on EdSource. “Outdoor...

Joanne Jacobs
Oct 20, 20242 min read


Covid stress hurt memory, 'flexible thinking' for kids and teachers, says study
Students -- and teachers -- lost reasoning, memory and executive-function skills during the pandemic. Stress? Long Covid? Screens?

Joanne Jacobs
Sep 21, 20241 min read


'We are talking 4- and 5-year-olds who are throwing chairs, biting, hitting ... '
Covid toddlers are now in school, and teachers say many are not doing very well, report Claire Cain Miller and Sarah Mervosh in the New...

Joanne Jacobs
Jul 2, 20242 min read


Teens spend 4.8 hours a day on social media, says Gallup
U.S. teenagers average 4.8 hours a day on social media apps such as YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and X (formerly Twitter),...

Joanne Jacobs
Oct 19, 20232 min read


'The Runaway Bunny' goes to college
A "dramatic mental health crisis" is challenging colleges and universities, writes Mary Dana Hinton, president of Hollins University, on...

Joanne Jacobs
Jul 15, 20232 min read
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