The Haddonfield Board of Education on August 20 received a preview of the district’s new guidance to establish limits on elementary school student screen time with education technology in class. The board also gave first-reading approval to a policy governing generative artificial intelligence and adopted a state-required policy regulating students’ use of internet-enabled devices during the school day.
Assistant superintendent Dr. Gino Priolo presented the district’s completed K-5 educator guidance on screen time and educational technology, the result of an approximately eight-month review that included parent and staff focus groups.
The guidance establishes daily screen-time limits by grade, from an estimated average of 4 minutes in kindergarten to 56 minutes in fifth grade. Those totals include use of required curriculum platforms as well as productivity tools such as web browsers, presentation software and digital writing tools, Priolo said.
The new standards set print as the default format for reading. Digital text may be used when a text is unavailable in print, when required through an IEP or 504 plan, or when students are explicitly learning digital reading skills.
The district will also require handwriting for most early-stage writing work. Students in kindergarten and first grade will not publish final drafts on a computer. Second- and third-grade students may type only at the publishing stage, after brainstorming and rough drafts are completed on paper. Fourth- and fifth-grade students may use digital tools for drafting and revision.
The guidance also restricts passive screen use, including videos shown during snack time or as a default activity. Teachers will be expected to pause large-screen instruction frequently for student interaction. Full-length films will not be shown start-to-finish, even when connected to the curriculum.
Recess and classroom rewards will be screen-free under the updated expectations.
Chromebooks issued to students in grades three through five will remain at school by default. Teachers may send devices home for a specific instructional purpose, and the district said it will make accommodations for students who need a device or internet access outside school.
