Question
I have had over 500 emails from constituents calling for a smartphone-free childhood, so I welcome today’s announcement. However, while restricting access to smartphones, schools are increasingly issuing laptops and tablets that pupils can take home and use beyond the school day. As some independent schools are re-examining the role of screens in education, technology use is expanding across the state school sector. Will the Minister explain how the Government will ensure that one form of screen dependency is not simply being replaced by another? What consideration has been given to the amount of time that children spend using school-issued devices both in and outside the classroom?
Answer
The hon. Member has hit the nail on the head: that is the issue that schools need to navigate at the moment, and we need to help them. The edtech certification, on which we are starting the consultation, is designed to tackle exactly that issue and help school leaders navigate some of those choices, as are the trials and evaluations that we will put in place on AI chatbots. That is linked to the warnings from PISA about school systems elsewhere in the world, where technology has been left to let rip in the education system and has displaced books, reading, writing and some of the more tactile things that we know children need in school to have the right cognitive development.17% vibes
Verdict: AMBER (45/100)
The reply gives a concrete answer to the first part of the question, pointing to an edtech certification now going to consultation to help school leaders prevent school device use from replacing smartphone dependency, along with planned trials of AI chatbots. It only partly answers the second part, which asked how much time children spend on school devices. It acknowledges the issue and cites general OECD concerns about technology displacing reading, but gives no assessment or figures on in-class or out-of-school device use. A member of the public would likely need to ask again for that specific information.
How we got there
| Question item | Coverage | Specificity | Rationale |
|---|---|---|---|
| How will the Government ensure that screen dependency arising from school-issued laptops and tablets does not simply replace dependency on smartphones? | Addressed | Direct | The reply names a concrete mechanism, the edtech certification now entering consultation, which is designed to help school leaders make the choices that prevent school device use from replacing smartphone dependency, and it adds planned trials and evaluations of AI chatbots. The enforcement side of 'ensure' is not spelled out, but the item is substantively answered. |
| What is the department's assessment or view of the amount of time children spend using school-issued devices, both in the classroom and outside the school day? | Partially Addressed | Hedged | The reply acknowledges the issue and gives a general view, citing PISA warnings that technology has displaced books and reading elsewhere, but it gives no assessment or evidence about how much time children spend on school devices, either in class or outside the school day. |