"Although ed-tech companies tout huge learning gains, independent research has made clear that technology rarely boosts learning in schools—and often impairs it. A 2024 meta-analysis of 119 studies of early-literacy tech interventions, led by Rebecca Silverman of Stanford University, found the studies described programmes that delivered at best only marginal gains on standardised tests. The majority had little effect, no effect or harmful ones."

"Study after study shows that students’ comprehension is better when they read printed material, rather than content on screens. Similarly, they comprehend more when they write notes by hand rather than typing them.

In addition to reducing how much students learn, screens are bad for their physical health. Using screens more significantly increases the risk that students will become nearsighted. Also, using screens is a sedentary activity, but the human body needs to move. That’s why lessons that engage the senses and involve physical activity are especially important."

"No tech giant has been more aggressive in putting AI in front of schoolchildren than Google...Google's own researchers have written that the technology can pose elevated risks to children who struggle to distinguish chatbots from human interaction, and has potential for cognitive and emotional harm according to interviews with current and former Google employees and a review of more than a dozen Google research papers."

"Digital educational platforms have become ubiquitous in American classrooms, with tools like Google Workspace for Education, Kahoot!, Zearn, Khan Academy, and many others now structuring curriculum, instruction, collaboration, assessment, and communication. This policy brief highlights how these platforms are not neutral “tools” but complex ecosystems shaped by technical architectures, commercial imperatives, and political-economic interests."