With more parents pushing for limits on screen time in the classroom, Vermont state Rep. Rob Hunter, a Democrat, wants to make it easier for them to opt their children out of using laptops and iPads.
He co-sponsored legislation this year that would give parents an ed-tech “right of refusal.” A former English teacher, he was never a fan of the shift toward every student having their own laptop. Technology, he said, isn’t making students any smarter.
“In fact, we know it’s making them dumber,” he said, expressing a view shared by parents across the country, especially those with students in the elementary grades.
When his fellow lawmaker Rep. Leanne Harple read the bill, she imagined how tough it might be for teachers to accommodate such requests. An English teacher herself, she also speaks from experience. Her students do research online, where the information is more up to date than in books and academic journals. A 2024 American Federation of Teachers survey showed 83% of teachers use technology in the classroom daily.
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