Steve Jobs and other tech industry figures have been criticized for being low-tech parents, often limiting family use of gadgets and software. This approach offers more balance than screen-free parenting, where kids are not allowed any screen time. Many parents find the minimalist method to be effective in raising children.
The report focuses on how children engage with digital technologies, screens, and social media, as well as parents’ attitudes about these behaviors. “7 Parent-Tested Tips to Unplug and Play” offers strategies for getting young kids to spend less time with screens from real parents who embrace the positive aspects of new technology while building skills to mitigate risks. Low Demand Parenting is a low-arousal approach that prioritizes reducing stress and anxiety levels in children with PDA. It is based on trust, flexibility, collaboration, and a balanced approach to technology.
Being a low-tech parent involves being present physically and mentally, engaging with your children, and embracing a low-tech lifestyle. The new norm is that parents limit the use of smartphones and social media by their children to a few hours per day. Too much tech, social media, and TV is considered a negative for children, with studies showing that screen time overload can contribute to poor cardiovascular fitness, increased risk of obesity, type II diabetes, hypertension, and asthma. Children under 10 are most susceptible to addiction, so these parents draw the line at not allowing any gadgets during the week.
In conclusion, limiting access to technology for children is one of the most effective ways to raise them in today’s high-tech world. By adopting a low-tech lifestyle, parents can help their children develop good social skills and well-trained minds.
📹 High-tech Gurus are Low-tech Parents
Nick Bilton wrote a fascinating article in the New York Times titled, “Steve Jobs Was a Low-Tech Parent.” Most of us imagine that …
What is considered poor parenting?
Physical abuse, neglect, emotional abuse, and sexual abuse are common negative traits associated with bad parenting. These should be addressed immediately with professional help. However, parents may also unintentionally lead to adverse outcomes for their children. Recognizing these behaviors can help improve parenting. Assessing parenting style is challenging, but it’s crucial to separate the behavior from the person. This helps parents feel better about their parenting style.
What does poor parenting look like?
A large Irish study reveals that hostile parenting involves frequent harsh treatment and discipline, which can be physical or psychological. The study found that about 10 of the children were in a high-risk band for poor mental health, with children who experienced hostile parenting being more likely to fall into this group. Internalizing symptoms such as anxiety and social withdrawal were also observed, while externalizing symptoms like impulsive and aggressive behavior and hyperactivity were also observed.
What is toxic parenting?
A toxic parent creates an unhealthy environment for their child through negative behaviors such as constant criticism, manipulation, emotional neglect, or physical abuse. This results in a harmful and unhealthy environment for the child.
What is the harshest parenting style?
The most authoritarian style of parenting is typified by parental intrusiveness, strict rules that are not open to negotiation, and a lack of warmth. This parenting style is associated with the intergenerational transmission of abusive behaviors, indicating that individuals who were subjected to abuse during their childhood are more prone to engage in abusive behaviors toward their own children when they become parents.
Can you raise kids without technology?
The objective of parenting without technology can be achieved through the implementation of boundaries, the establishment of a positive role model, the identification of a suitable community, the facilitation of engagement with the child, and the allocation of time for shared activities.
What is the healthiest parenting style?
Authoritative parenting is the most recommended style for children, as it promotes emotional stability and self-sufficiency. It involves clear communication, age-appropriate standards, and setting boundaries. Children are encouraged to make choices and discuss appropriate behavior. Parents should listen to their children’s emotional health concerns and express love and affection frequently. Positive reinforcement and praise can be used to encourage desired behavior, while ignoring annoying attempts at attention. Parents can also promise to respond when children stop whining. Overall, authoritative parenting is a beneficial approach for children to develop self-awareness and emotional stability.
How to raise low-tech kids?
A digital minimalist is someone who uses digital media sparingly, recognizing the power and convenience of modern technologies but being wary of their potential to dominate one’s life and threaten offline experiences. This low-tech parenting philosophy offers more balance than screen-free parenting, as it allows kids to spend time outside every day, enrich their offline lives, choose simpler technology, use computers instead, and set an example.
By following these guidelines, parents can create a healthy balance for their children and maintain a balance in their daily lives. This approach can be more effective in the real world than screen-free parenting.
Does technology make parenting harder?
Digital technology has become increasingly prevalent in India, even in rural areas, making parenting more challenging than it appears. Most parents do not believe that technology has made life easier, with 70% of parents not believing it does. As technology connects us through distances, our physical spaces shrink, and children’s devices, such as television, computers, and mobile phones, become indispensable for children as young as two years old.
The continuous use of these digital mediums has a consistent effect on their minds, making parenting in the age of digital technology more challenging. Some studies suggest that excessive technology can cause temporary or permanent harm to a developing child’s mind. As a result, many parents now complain about the overuse of computers and mobile phones, highlighting the common downfalls of excessive technology.
What is the most problematic parenting style?
Neglectful parenting often leads to children with low self-esteem, difficulty in forming and maintaining relationships, and a lack of understanding of safety and security. This lack of care and engagement can result in children struggling with self-esteem and understanding of safety and security. It is crucial for parents to love their children, care for them, and provide them with the right life lessons, regardless of their feelings of guilt or unpleasantness about their parenting style.
What is the difference between low-tech and high tech?
Low-tech is a type of technology that is designed for simplicity and is made from local, preferably natural materials. It is designed to be repairable and recyclable, and is in line with a Do-It-Yourself (DIY) approach. Low-tech aims to create useful, sustainable, and accessible technical solutions for all, making it possible to live better with less. It is not just a movement, but a way of life, embracing the power of less powerful objects and giving up planned obsolescence for a more minimalist lifestyle. Low-tech is more than just a movement; it is a way of life that promotes a more sustainable and accessible lifestyle.
What is an example of a low-tech?
The term “low-tech” refers to primitive technologies like bushcraft and pre-industrial Revolution machines like windmills or sailboats. The economic boom after the Vietnam War led to doubts on progress, technology, and growth in the 1970s. This led to a “low-tech movement” defining soft technologies as “intermediaries”, “liberating”, or even democratic. A philosophy advocating widespread use of soft technologies was developed in the United States, with many studies conducted by researchers like Langdon Winner.
“Low-tech” has been increasingly used in scientific writings, particularly in the analysis of work from 1970s authors like Hirsch-Kreinsen, Hirsch-Kreinsen, and Gordon. This movement aimed to promote the widespread use of soft technologies in the post-industrial era.
📹 Inside A Tech-Free School Where Tech Executives Send Their Kids
The Waldorf teaching philosophy is used at more than 1000 institutions in 91 countries, including 136 schools in the U.S. …
college debt is at an all time high, students are realizing that college doesn’t mean guaranteed jobs anymore, higher degrees are often needed, companies are constantly trying to pay as little as possible and good entry level jobs are waning, the environment is being destroyed by companies but the blame is being placed on private citizens, companies use technology to spend as little as possible and put people out of work instead of enriching lives, etc Older adults: it’s technology that’s making these kids anxious.
I attend a Steiner (Waldorf) school as a senior student, it’s honestly so beautiful and having come from the Australian public school system, it’s something I can really appreciate for the difference. There is such a huge focus placed on being with nature, and understanding the world around us. With obscure, physical-based classes (e.g. gardening, metal work, sewing, wood work, lapidary, and more) that promote caring, a sense of community and a deeper understanding of our world and the people around us a whole. I’m blessed to attend such a beautiful hippie school. We use limited technology, but maintain, in my eyes, a balance. I use technology a lot at home, having never fully adhered to the Steiner philosophy and grown up in a family where this was normal, but school is a welcome reprieve from the online world. We use a self-based learning experience, where each student has the ability and opportunity to learn at a pace that suits their needs but still give them the required knowledge of that subject. We do, in fact, do coding as a class, but I attend a more “progressive” Waldorf school that compared to many typical Steiner schools has incorporated a greater amount of technology into their curriculum. (By that I mean I have like 3 classes that don’t require me to use a mechanical pencil and printer paper to write up assignments.)
As someone who has been in Waldorf education through high school and middle school, I will say this portrayal is not entirely accurate. While in the very orthodox belief of Waldorf there should be no tech, that is far from the truth in these schools. In middle school and high schools, students are no different than at any other schools. All still glued to their phones and fully absorbed in media culture. I think these ideas of no tech rest mostly in the early years in the child’s education. Teachers just put more emphasis on the value of human interaction. Nobodies riding around on horse and buggy lmao. Nobody I know has any sort of tech restrictions. Oh, and for people wondering about the tuition, 90% of the people I know are on financial aid. only a handful of people can actually afford the tuition.
The fact they do most of their assignments handwritten is something I shouldn’t have to miss. In my hs we did nearly ALL of our work on computers, it was horrible for my eyes and I’d always ask to do it handwritten instead, some of the teachers would get frustrated at me like, we aren’t supposed to live on computers
Thanks for this. As a retired (escaped) teacher this is reassuring. I taught for ten years in the Los Angele public schools. I wound up as a Pool Teacher, which meant that I went to lots of different schools, taught every possible subject. It gave me an amazing overview of what goes on in schools. Students staring at phones? In the majority of schools it was impossible to get students to put their phones away. The basic attitude of the adults was ‘this is impossible,’ but the next school over, same everything, except: no phones out in classes. Difference? Schoolwide practice of no phones in class. I noticed a couple of things. First, it takes only about 1/3rd of teachers insisting on a good practice, like no phones, use of daily planners to achieve very high compliance rates. In my first school we used to have teams, where the same teachers would teach the same population of students, as this practiced faded away the teacher ‘teams’ still met, but only shared about 1/3rd of our students. My colleague suggested we insist on students using their planners. It worked. So rule of thumb, 1/3rd of teachers reaching 1/3rd of students can result in significant changes. (Serious endemic problem in education. Something like this is successful, and… yet it doesn’t spread. It might get mentioned, but there’s no follow through. Skinner had far more success with pigeons than actual results has on education. Support. Secondary schools are full of students in various cliques, by far the most effective are the mean girls.
I used to teach at a Reggio Emilia preschool which is a play-based approach where technology is limited in class. In my school, the teachers had a computer to email and make yearbooks for the kids, but the kids never saw a glowing screen during class time, instead they got to play, explore different centers, and make art. Waldorf schools are not the same as a traditional school that doesn’t have the budget for computers, Waldorf kids are taught to think for themselves, be independent, and learn about the world through art, storytelling, and nature. Kids learn at their own pace and get individual attention from their teachers. In many Waldorf schools, students can have the same teacher for several years, so they build a close bond and the teachers really know their students and see their journey as they grow. My issue with Waldorf is that teachers still tell kids what to do and make them all do the same activity instead of letting them choose what they want to learn, which is what the Reggio approach is. It’s still better than a traditional school and it’s better for kids to explore nature and make art using real material instead of clicking on a screen all day. Kids don’t need to learn how to use technology, it’s actually bad for young kids to use phones and iPads since it affects their attention span, mood, sleep, and ability to entertain themselves with their own imagination. Tech is purposely made to be user-friendly and easy to use, so just like I was able to use a smartphone and other tech as an adult since that stuff didn’t exist when I was a kid or teenager, kids who grow up tech-free will easily be able to use technology when they get older.
In my place, parents can give their child phone at any age, but here the thing, we don’t bring them to school. High school kid sometimes bring them, but they only use it when they out of the school. You don’t use it in class, you don’t use it at lunch. We have computer class, but it’s only on Sunday and for an hour. That’s it. I don’t understand what’s up with these “tech free school” it’s just a school.
These rich parents should sent their kids to developing countries in Asia. These kids will get the following benefits: 1. Tech-free schooling without pretending to be tech free 2. Substantially low tuition cost that one-day work in US McDonald’s can pay for one semester or annual fee 3. Learn the second language in real life atmosphere with zero chance of speaking English 4. Experience multicultural diversity that cannot be seen in their rich counties 5. Make friend with foreigners without risking your kids or their friends being illegal aliens 6. Virtually low or no remittance needed since your kids can grow their own foods and make their own clothing and much more! Come and study in developing Asia! Turn you kids’ tech-free tuition into their college money so that they can study whatever they want without getting a student loan!
I’m a Software Developer. I’m on the computer all day and for me, it’s empowering. I can find answers in seconds. I literally learned to code through @theNewBoston right here on YouTube! I learned Calculus on YouTube. Also, the internet is the great equalizer! If you can do the work, it doesn’t matter how much money you have, the color of your skin, where you grew up. Nothing matters but the work you produce and I love it!
I was skeptical about this at first. I thought the same things many people thought about their privilege, their ability to go outside easily, the fact that they won’t have to worry about a job but these are students who will be in positions of power in the future just due to the genetic lottery. Maybe it wouldn’t be bad for them to see the natural world and their fellow classmates as important and that way they may want to help make the world more like that for everyone. They will be privileged either way, so maybe making them connect with others is a good thing.
As a public school educator, I agree. It’s all about experience. Kids these days don’t have it. They also don’t know how to talk… In regards to everything, they don’t know how to talk to resolve things, ask for things, talk with friends, etc. They don’t know how to behave. They also have lost their focus and everything is boring. Most importantly, they can’t listen.
I visited a waldorf school here in Germany and grew up without a TV or article games at home. I believe it’s great for children to be encouraged to play outside and also to learn to make actual thinks with your hand like, doing pottery, knitting, wood carving, welding etc. As a Teenager i wished we had programming classes and learned how to use different software. For instance during art classes it makes sense to use programs like photoshop and InDesign rather than just working with paper and brush. Also tuition is far less expensive here, ranging between 150 to 180 € per month. I wouldn’t pay 30.000 Dollars (I guess it’s for a year?) to send my children to a waldorf school.
This is awesome. Many people on computers HAVE NO IDEA of what they are actually doing and cannot FATHOM the concepts BEHIND what they are actually doing. Examples can be how to research PROPERLY and obtain FIRST SOURCE INFORMATION AND PEER REVIEWED DATA AND ACTUALLY FIGURE OUT FOR YOURSELF IF THE PRIMARY SOURCE WAS VALID! Also, a GROWING NUMBER of Architectural and Engineering students don’t REALLY know the THEORIES AND HANDS ON APPLICATIONS OF WHAT THEY ARE ACTUALLY DOING OR DESIGNING AND RARELY CAN EXTRAPOLATE DESIGN FLAWS INTO THE REAL WORLD. (I have noticed this trend and it is VERY WORRISOME…especially when these people are learning to design buildings, roads, bridges, etc.). LOL Starting kids, “hands on”, is an awesome foundation. ANYONE CAN PICK UP COMPUTER SKILLS LATER ON – if they really choose to do so. “Spell check”, is a useless nightmare – it creates more errors than it actually solves. And people NEVER LEARN to spell. There is something intrinsically beneficial to the mind and body by PHYSICALLY LOOKING UP A WORD OR LOOKING UP A GRAMMATICAL RULE. PHYSICALLY RESEARCHING something creates new pathways in the brain and facilitates ACTUAL learning. I WAS APPALLED to find out that some USA schools stopped teaching script in school. Learning cursive writing activates a different part of the brain than typing or writing block letters. (After not writing cursive for a time, I find that I have to concentrate more to get a proper fluidity in connecting the letters). I still feel that the more hands on you are, the stronger your intellectual acumen – and this may even stave off dementia latter in life.
This isn’t a good thing. It’s all about maintaining a balance, not about completely shutting something out of their lives. When you do that, especially with children and teens, they’re eventually going to rebel and go to the exact extreme opposite of things. Technology can be extremely beneficial in our lives. Teach them responsible use of technology and how to maintain a healthy balance with the use of phones, social media etc. Once these kids leave this environment and return to the “real world” you’ve alienated them from a society that actively uses technology 24/7 and they’re either going to rebel or lose control because they haven’t been taught control, they’ve been taught absence.
I teach 1st grade in a title 1 school. All of my kids have a chrome book and get to do an online math lesson to follow up and check their understanding after I teach them the lesson. This is the only “tech” my students use. I think it’s pretty amazing to give these kids use of technology is a technology based world. 🤷🏼♀️
I LOVE this concept! I’m so sick of seeing cell phones and computers. Sometimes I wish we could go back to writing letters instead of texting. It was so personal. Let’s face it – These kids are going to use tech when they get home so I don’t see anything wrong with an 8 hour break. (Please don’t tap on my face. It will hurt really bad.)
I am glad they mentioned that increased device use may be a marker of something awry or off in real life and that attention should be brought to what devices may be used for instead of how much they are being used. Such a valid point when you consider all that goes on behind closed doors and in society. I wish I was taught how to knit, crochet, and sew, and make soap and other things when I was younger and in elementary school. I don’t really care much for talking to others unless it is something important or at least interesting and useful.
I really like this Waldorf school but not having tech in and of itself does crap-all for building social connections. I was born in ’89 and didn’t get a cell phone until my senior year of high school. I had used computers my whole life but mainly at school, so it wasn’t unlimited access. My family had one off and on, but computers also wouldn’t become a staple until high school. So, that leaves TV and game consoles. Those were prevalent my entire life, but I never got lost in them. Two brothers made me playing the console a rarity and I learned to enjoy perusal them play and I would play minimally. And while I enjoyed TV, I had a handful of favorite shows but when those ended, I pulled away from the screen and did something else. Played with toys. Read a book. Wrote a grammatically incorrect but nonsensical, funny story. And sometimes I played outside, though I stopped doing that for the most part by the time I was 11. The one constant to all of this? I’ve always been a social outcast. I’ll admit that I had some of it coming to me as I was an oddity, despite my best efforts, but fifteen schools growing up can’t be wrong. Moving always provided me a chance to try to reinvent myself but i could never really achieve it. Finding myself a pariah didn’t happen because of tech. In my case…it saved me. But there’s some other big differences this Waldorf school has that isn’t in most schools. Smaller class sizes means more focus on students, more engagement. A teacher doesn’t just brush it off as not their problem when they have a student that sits by themselves every single day because they just don’t have the time or energy to focus on that.
i come from a high high high tech school and when i tell you it has saved my life it has. there’s a difference between training students to use tech for education rather than just using tech for social media or personal uses. my school is byod and they gave us work and allowed us access to ALL the information we needed — google, occasional youtube, online tutoring, online books — it taught us how to be independent and learn through, what is inevitably the future. knowing how to sew a button is helpful but instead of paying thousands of dollars to just look up a damn youtube article. this honestly just makes me feel like privileged people are trying to be different.
Strongly disagree. Kids need to have a balance. They need to learn how to use all kinds of technology very fluently, and even learn how they work if possible. Parents may not be teaching these things at home. These devices can also be very good teaching tools. But kids should also learn how to play outside, climb trees, widdle sticks, and play, imagine, and create in the natural elements. As well as learning basic survival skills and refreshing those skills here and there.
I personally think that by restricting screen time usage and use of technologies actually is restricting a child’s talent in Media, article, Design and Coding. Let’s say a child from a public school will have a good understanding of programming which is a highly beneficial life skill whereas for private schools like these, kids would have limited knowledge about it. Who agrees?
What they’re not mentioning here is that the Los Altos Hills school has “adjusted tuition”—they don’t turn people away for inability to pay. Other Waldorf Schools do this as well. Their fees aren’t any higher than many other private schools that are not as “good”. I’ve been to this school many, many times. Highly recommended curriculum, although it is not Christian, if that’s what someone is looking for, but so, so excellent in so many areas.
All of these people in the comments are saying that they don’t see any kids playing outside or Socially interacting with other people like THEY did, but you simply cannot compare kids today with your childhood and assume that your childhood experiences are the best way. Now I’m not saying that the “digital way” is the best way, nor am I saying it’s the worst way, its just the way for kids today. Now right now you could still get away with putting your kids in schools like this because some of the skills they learn in those schools can still be used to make good money, but in the future once the world becomes more tech saturated it could put them at a disadvantage because those skills won’t be needed anymore but tech skills will. Overall you can’t keep kids away from tech forever if you want them to succeed in life.
Just like old school! I love it, I used to have a callus on my right middle finger from writing so much and nowadays kids don’t even take notes in school they’re just given a piece of paper which is practically the answer key to the test and they have to MEMORIZE it not learn it or know how anything works or understand it just memorize the answers, it’s ridiculous.
I am a kindergarten teacher, and I cringe when I see a child with an Iphone, and cannot write their name, tell you their birthday, don’t know very basic skills. Listening and retention skills are bad. Read the book Glow Kids, and you might reconsider how much tech and when you allow your child to have access to it. I am not anti tech, I am concerned how tech is changing students because their parents and school are not mindful of what this is doing to them. Yes it looks good when speaking about it, however, many children are struggling with very basic skills including reading, writing, listening, and thinking.
“Studies show that children are becoming more and more depressed, anxious, and more exhausted” Kids: it’s because the school system is becoming more and more competitive therefore I become more depressed and sad for my grades and I become more anxious and exhausted because I spend nearly all my time studying Parents: ITS THOSE DARN PHONES
i went to a waldorf school in the pacific north went for 2-8 and let me tell you: kids are almost completely unprepared for the real world. they dont know how to relate to kids who didnt go to waldorf and also everyone thinks waldorf sounds like a cult (it kinda is). honestly, id never recommend a waldorf school to anyone. i had the same teacher for all those years and the same 18 person class and my teacher didnt know how to teach and all the kids in my class were awful. just send your kids to a normal school edit: also most of us (myself included) werent academically prepared for high school. i had awful grades first quarter of my freshman year bc i didnt know how to do some of the math and science bc waldorf didnt teach me enough
As a Waldorf school student myself it is an extreme way to get rid of technology. It made it something that people would sneak around and use in secret. My school was 20,000$ a year. I liked it in general but the teachers were way too heavily involved in the students life outside school. A lot of students in 8th grade dropped out because they didn’t liked feeling controlled. I did like teaching the whole person approach.
Idk about this. Tech is the future, and I feel like kids should be adjust to it from a young age and be able to use it in everyday life. When I was a junior in high school they gave us all laptops and said “school work is now all online” and I was unable to learn well without writing. It was a big switch from taking written exams to digital exams, writing in and filling in class work with pencil was easier than typing in my answers into some program. It was a tough switch and honestly, if we were introduced younger it would be easier to adapt to it
After seeing how addicted and dependent some of my kids are to their phones – dysfunctional – yes I would love to learn how to crochet or water and feed a horse. Having said that, I don’t really think intellectuals and educators should demonize all technology or computer use amongst adults – namely educated professionals who are informed and well-considered.
Montessori schools have always been about hands on learning, practice skills, and spending time in nature, so these aren’t new learning techniques. If you can’t afford to send your kids to a tech-free private school, fear not. You can take them on hikes on the weekends, get a couple of chickens in your backyard, and teach them how to knit/sew yourself (I taught myself through YouTube tutorials) or through a friend. If parents spend their evenings after work on their phones or in front of a TV, of course their kids won’t have any interest in going outside or doing tech-free activities. I don’t think it’s kids who have a problem with devices. When your life is focused around career success, family interactions in the real world go down, stress levels go up, and then there’s a need to escape through electronics.
I think there’s enough research to show that growing trend in unhappiness is based on a feeling of isolation. That feeling of isolation is caused back a lack of meaningful social interaction, which has been replaced by smart phone use. They’ve already done this research on isolation and addiction. People who feel socially connected don’t get addicted easily. Basically, social isolation leads to unfulfillment, unhappiness, and higher rates of addiction. If people are using devices 4 hours a day INSTEAD of interacting socially … then it will lead to that feeling of isolation and becoming even more addicted to these devices. I think we have a case for more than just correlation.
I don’t think it’s a bad idea. It just sucks that at schools like these there is barely any diversity. Everyone looks almost the same. It was like this when I toured a high class educational institution at school. I only counted 3-4 students of color out of about a hundred that I saw. They talk about how beneficial these schools are and the problem with constant device usage, but it’s not accessible to everyone.
wait this how every school work in my country we are not allowed to bring our phones to school no one does we use exercise book to wright notes and text books to study. we start school at 7:30 and go back home at 5:45 do we spend the whole with out any tech ohh and i live in Ethiopia thats in Africa if you didnt know
Stop usurping such basic terms for limited meanings of your choosing! Technology – “tech” – is all around that school. What you clearly mean but do not qualify is “digital technology.” It’s astounding that, as prestigious of a website as CNBC is, in a story specifically about educating children, a very broad term “taught” to us is completely misused. I sure hope that you don’t teach your children with that mouth, it’s bringing us all down!
Is it just me or I have never been able in a school where your aloved to use your phone, like even in 7/6th grade no one had phones and you could never bring or use your phone in school, we did have IT periods thought where you would use the school computers, even the higher classes like 11th and 10th grade
this just makes me want to become a good parent. it’s sad that this gap in learning certain things formerly taught by parents (how to drive, cook, garden, finance skills, etc.) often happens when parents are busy working to provide basic necessities. As a person who has grown up around technology, I want to help the next generation learn how to use technology in a healthy and moderate way.
In elementary school they teach you how to use basic computer programs such as Word, PowerPoint etc. Some schools even help students develop proper keyboard typing skills, these skills are crucial in the modern world, and based on how these schools operate, they reccomend kids dont have access to media at home either…
A lot of people are making a mistake in assuming that Waldorf is only about being tech free. The system is a lot more which develops the full potential of the child through wholistic engagement. So no, most of you probably never experienced any thing like Waldorf. You just attended a school that couldn’t afford tech.
It’s because a lot of tech entrepreneurs didn’t come from opulence, they came from upper middle class or lower, they had to build themselves up because they didn’t get things handed to them. They understand just how damaging improper use of technology can be for a child and how tech can take away a lot of your drive due to the constant stimulation.
As someone who grew up with smart phones around I can really see the impact in myself by having internet access 24/7 my memory is just where it should be because I don’t feel the need to remember things I just put it all on my phone and I get anxiety from having long conversations and having to interact with people I’ve always been shy but technology enable me to no have to try hard to make meaningful relationships other than through the screen and at the end of the day even if they feel real the quality is much lower. Kids under 5 having iPads with them at all times is sad. I won’t be giving my kid a device until 13
Oh please, I was going to tech free in 1974-1990 schools but I’m still stuck to a community college and I’m working for my self. My daughter is high tech and she has a better job than me. What is on going here? I’m still very shy and I am studying, drawing and working. How can I get success for my future?
I grew up with article games and a home computer . This was instrumental in allowing me to explore my desires and allow my imagination to flourish. I also read books and played. Children learning Maya, or Auto CAD or Excel can be useful. If I had children I would encourage tech literacy as opposed to gardening and sewing classes
Look at the kids in the classroom shots- yes, they’re engaged when making individual handicrafts, but students sitting at desks looks like straight up lecture. I love how tech allows me, as a teacher, to provide opportunities for differentiation, for self-directed exploration of a topic, and for one-on-one conversations with students. I’m on board for fixing buttons and nature walks, but for history, science, and math, I see a lot more benefits with tech-assisted project-based learning.
I’ve gone to a waldorf school for awhile. While in the elementary school it really is tech free, middle school and high schools use more technology. By high school everyone can use tech. While there are some extreme families most are not, my parents both work work in computer security so I’ve had exposure. I know some people who are going into tech since graduation. While people end up the same in their ability to function in the modern world, I believe the later introduction of tech can help kids in their formative years. This is what I’ve found personally, and I do know it doesn’t work for everyone.
It is an interesting education approach. I can agree that basic math skills, critical thinking skills, hand writing, outlining notes, public speaking, and basic flashcard usage are powerful skills that should be learned without dependence on a computer………… Computers do offer unparalleled access to information, and are very necessary for the job market. When it comes to documentation, computers with the ability to copy and print are a necessity, unless we want to go back to using scribes and or manual typewriters and carbon paper.
I’m just going to put myself out there. I have gone to public school 3-8. I went to Montessori for the beginning before getting diagnosed with dyslexia and some ADD. But that’s not the point. The point I’m tryig to get across is when I went to public school and they got some comments it help me out a lot. It saved my butt when I couldn’t spell something or when we had to write an essay. I know if I had kept writing by hand I would get less annoying but with the dyslexia reading and writing aren’t easy. Just my experience to share with everyone🤷♀️
Remember when schools used to teach cursive writing, how Geography, U.S ‘ history, home economics or woodshop was required courses?, how we had to go to homeroom during the daily school schedule? There were pulled down maps, globes, Avc carts, blackboard, a projector with plastic sheets, individual desks with storage areas in every classrooms… How we had all seven classes in one day in middle school and every grades ate lunch at different times? Remember hallway monitors, having to wear uniforms for PE, library check out carts, . Remember having watch bill Nye the science guy in biology class? Remember how line drills were called suicide drills, Dodgeball was played In every schools in the US, vending machines were accessible at all hours of the day with the yummiest junk😜. Remember how fun playing Jacks, collecting marbles, and how entertaining Chinese jump roping was? RIP the 90s
I really wish all schools did this; my kids are in public school and since the return after covid, more and more tech is being implemented and yet it hasn’t helped at all. Many students are still behind, repeated a grade or not yet on grade level. The solution to educational gaps with poor people are i-ready and zearn, according to public schools. All children deserve a Waldorf or Montessori style education
We aren’t allowed phones full stop at schl, and only use computers in ict and music ( and a lot of ppl stop those subjects after 14) so next year I will probably spend about one period a month in a computer room. It’s pretty call because u have to interact with ppl at break and lunch. Plus it’s free!
This does have some benefits, however in high school I disagree. The business world runs on technology. Also, its extremely beneficial that if you have trouble with a particular concept you can find a teacher, an infographic, something that can help you online. Just learn to use tech responsibly! These phones are not just devices to entertain you, they offer access to an amazing amount of knowledge. They offer tremendous benefits as well, I can watch a Harvard lecture or learn modern dance. I see it as a miracle.
A lot of the comments are missing the point. Kids will interact with tech every single day. Almost everything is touch screen + connected to AI at this point, whether you realize it or not. The point is to reduce or eliminate technological devices used for entertainment or pleasure IN THEIR HOME (ex: smartphones that have social media apps). It limits productivity and they are created to be addictive. It’s just not a good idea to have around kids or teens. Classrooms have tried to add tech without addressing the fundamental issues with our education system, thinking that will fill in the gaps. It won’t. Which is why most of these kids will outperform ours in every way, despite not having up to date knowledge of the latest kid friendly software.
Only in America do you have to pay extra for wanting to live like how humans are normally supposed to live, and today, what poor people in 3rd world country call, life. Me: I just want to eat fruits and vegetables that don’t have chemicals sprayed on them, eat chicken that are raised like chickens are supposed to be raised and go to school and learn basic life skills. America: That’s doing too much. You’ve gotta pay extra for that
The kids are entirely indoctrinated into this school concept. I was in high school at the beginning of the smartphone mass adoption (iPhone 4 was introduced my freshman year). No one was completely plugged in their phone. Though I understand that an outsider may think that. The reality of the situation was that we had policies for all classes AND study hall: No talking (at all), no note passing, no sleeping, and no leaving. You had two options: study or take out your phone. As soon as we were able to be free of that prison, everyone was socializing, everyone was hanging out, people did things together because life would be boring if they didn’t. It just looked like everyone was a phone addict because the teachers hated their jobs and outlawed socialization. I promise the kids, all the supposed benefits of being tech-free are really just the benefits of having good teachers, caring parents, and well off means. Not everyone is allotted that privilege.
I hope people realize that these kids are being trained to be America’s future nobility; just as nobility of the past put an emphasis on soft skills to distinguish them from the working class (arts, leisure, culture, approved mannerisms). Not saying it an inherit bad thing, as their parents are just trying to provide their kids the most positive upbringing possible, but when public schools remove the arts, physical educational, and cursive from the curriculum in favour of repetitive task-oriented fulfillment education centered around workstations, then I’m sure you too can see the writing on the wall.
It’s not the absent of technology which improves learning, but the presence of good pedagogy practice. If technology is interfering with the pedagogy, then drop it; but no need to be anti-technology. It’s a tool, more appropriate for some use cases and not for others. It is more helpful for something and not for others.
Hey guess what My 9 year old has A tablet Sense she was 6 years old. Recently has upgraded to a laptop. I don’t see the problem if it’s balanced that’s the problem parents don’t balance. My kids go outside every day. There is nothing wrong with article games as long it’s the proper article games for age. In fact it has been proven that article games Increase alertness attention to detail hand eye coordination this is very true. I do agree with the no social media Until probably 17 years of age. My wife and I set the example no phones while driving no texting and driving unless your passenger. No technology at the dinner table. And no technology 3 hours before bed. I don’t think there’s a problem unless you just let your kids run Wild. Balance is the key To everything.
people like to blame tech for making gen z so depressed/anxious. it’s stupidly annoying. i agree with what the uc irvine professor in the article said – we tend to over-use tech as a means to address or unhealthily cope with outside pressure. our generation was born around when columbine and 9/11 happened, and that’s set the tone for the widespread tension many of us feel. we grew up with a 24/7 news cycle; we were kids when the economy tanked; we were raised alongside a background of widely publicized mass shootings at movie theaters, at schools, at churches, etc. basically fed a constant stream of bad news. and even as the economy has recovered, wages have stagnated and college tuition has increased. getting into college (especially an ~elite~ one) and securing a job is more competitive than ever. the environment is becoming increasingly threatened and no one seems to care. all of that is why we’re messed up. anyways, these kids are from wealthy, well-connected families that will be able to ensure their children’s success regardless of those factors. i don’t really trust what they’re saying. it’s just neat soundbites to support a narrative + give them something interesting to put on their linkedin lmao. especially that one kid complaining about people who switched to public schools (the horror!).
Candice Odgers lost all credibility the moment she opened her mouth. The panic about screen time and anxiety are 100% justified. Parents and teachers know what they are seeing from their kids. She is a corporate plant put in this article so that the public doesn’t turn on the tech industry, but we 100% should be asking ourselves: Should these tech companies be allowed to continue “innovating” if they are making products and services that make human lives worse? Personally, I don’t want my kids on chromebooks and I certainly don’t want them using AI in school.
As a neuroscientist and former teacher, I applaud the reduction of technology in schools. Tech = tool. However, I oppose the premise that teaching knitting or crocheting is of any value. It would be more beneficial to teach instrumental music, which builds neural networks linking listening, fine and gross motor skills, reading, translating, and social skills. I dare these teachers to cite one peer-reviewed study that knitting improves learning. I can cite thousands of studies that music education improves learning, improves social skills, improves behavior, and lifts depression in our young people. Buy some violins and pianos.
I go to a Waldorf school and you all just aren’t aware of what the environment is actually like. A “low income public school” and Waldorf are completely different. My school doesn’t allow any of the students to have phones in school even during breaks. Does a low income public school have gardening or handwork as a class? Do the teachers at a public school really take the time to make sure their students grasp the concept completely?
I’m wondering how this is not just proving the school system is broken and simply in need of a major overhaul. 95 % of future jobs will require tech, massive and massive and massive and massive amounts of it. You want to be in administration, your job will be tech related, You want to be in manufacturing, your job will be tech related. But since students are graded on their ability to memorize 100 things for a useless paper exam, these schools are ”successful”. It’s like it’s no longer about forming people that will be able to get a career and be productive members of society, but about finding a place to stock kids while their parents work, and expect them to vomit an A. The jobs of today, and the jobs of the future are about communication, technology and technology. Teach your kids how to make basic programming, build a social network and they’ll have 10 jobs waiting for them when they get out of pre-K.
This just sounds like my school in the U.K. we didn’t have lots of PCs or laptop and had it only for IT class and booked laptops when we needed them for research. Only 17-18 had privileges to have them constantly around but that’s because we heavily had to use the internet for research because we didn’t have and extensive library and easier to get the assignments done. We weren’t allowed phones, laptops or iPads/tablets out in classrooms or break times. Sooo ??? I think technology is part of our lives and it’s a skill needed in your adult hood
The problem isn’t with tech. The problem is when teachers get lazy and decide to let the tech do the teaching for them. And I feel sorry for these kids, not growing up with technology tends to put you at a huge disadvantage in todays modern world. I learned to use a mouse before I could walk, but that’s not a bad thing. Because now that I am an adult I spend less time figuring out how to use the computer and now I actually spend time using the computer to create important things. And yes. I have friends, I have fun in real life, but I also use technology as a tool to make my life better than it would be without it.
im glad my school had 1 computer per class that we could use for projects but otherwise we used books and pens . I still think I had too much time on tv and article games as a kid and it was just ps1 and public tv. I cant imagine how screwed my attention span would be if i was handed a ipad at 3 years old. I am just as good at computers as anyone else . The smartest kid in my class had 1 black and white tv at home with 2 websites, Her parents were hippies and she spent lots of time outside . She can read a whole book in a few hours and does it for fun . She played college level piano when she was 13 and she was really good at physics and art at highschool . Now shes older she is fine at technology . u can still pick it up without having it in class all the time .
Oaks Amusement Park was taken over by a Multnomah county sheriff and Portland police sting operations and they were sabotaging rides at that park! They sabotaged all of Kiddyland via electrocution in 1983 and in 1984 they got rid of almost everybody that worked there and they sabotaged almost all the rides on the midway and then hired all new rookie employees that are not experienced enough to catch problems and sabotage to those rides! Between 1992 and 1993 that sting spent over a quarter of a million dollars to cover up the fact they were sabotaging rides in that park! In 1993 the movie FreeWilly was partially filmed at Oaks Amusement Park! Now you know why most all traditional amusement parks in this country and around the world went out of business, because it was government stings that take control of them and sabotage them so government can justify closing them down!
These children will absolutely be disadvantaged immediately at the college entry level if they aren’t taught modern research techniques, how to make slideshows and presentations, how to use word processors, etc. Every single essay I wrote, ever, in middle school and beyond was done in a word processor and I’m nearly 30 — do they really want their children to be decades behind their peers? Their parents, who are clearly older than my generation, are completely out of touch with what is basic, expected knowledge. Hint: If it’s tech related, and there are senior citizen courses on it at the local community college, then your child should know it backwards and forwards by 5th grade better than you do. Any study looks good if you’re willing to ignore other equally legitimate studies. This is an incredibly biased article intended to advertise and praise this particular school and it’s teaching style. It is possible to have the best of both worlds without debilitating your child. Just put them in a normal school that happens to teach knitting and have a cozy farm. They exist. And they have computers.
Technology not used in the right way is the problem not the technology itself. This makes as much sense as a pencil-free school, or how about a book-free school. At some point, these were all new technologies. The ancient Greeks thought WRITING THINGS DOWN was detrimental to learning. Pure absurdity.
I have a problem with the tuition of this school system. You cannot bring down the tuition costs or offer scholarships for poor kids to get into this school, but you think it is shameful for them to use 3 more hours of tech on their phones? this sounds counterproductive don’t you think? If you do not wear uniforms to this school and the money is not used to keep up with the “tech Jones”, then why does it cost so much?
The tech that grade 8+ gets to use is just normal school. We don’t have laptops or any computer in a non-computer room (excluding the teacher’s computer and interactive white board). Computer rooms are only used for ICT or language lessons. Every other lesson is just book and pen. Does the US allow their students to use laptops or phones in all lessons? In the U.K., it is considered a distraction and you will get your device taken away from you.
I’m a professional software developer and I would definitely agree that too much screen time is a bad thing, even for me. However a technology-free education seems like throwing out the baby with the bath water. When I was in high school there were no coding classes and I didn’t write my first program until my freshman year of college, despite pretty much knowing what I wanted to do for a living. If I had the chance to be exposed to coding at a younger age perhaps I would have gotten a better head start.
You know why kids are lonely and turn to their phone? It’s because gen x couldn’t raise kids and basically gave the kids anxiety. From talking to my friends I found out that all of our parents act the same and that’s probably the reason we turned out this way. We go to phones for entertainment and to live the real world we are in because we hate it. You think I like being on the screen all day instead of doing something with my life? Tech isn’t the problem it’s the parents who raised the kids. By the way to the kid who was talking about their public school “friend” who was looking at their phone while they were talking, he probably didn’t want to talk to you bud. That’s what most teens do went they don’t like the person they are talking to.
I love the idea of less technology, but if they are very limited in high school or middle school they won’t be able to learn tech skills for college. For example typing (not only using tow fingers). They need to type most of their assignments in the computer. They also need to learn how to research on websites, not only books or paper resources.
I mean it’s fun idea… but…. almost every job nowadays requires a decent amount of computer skills. If you’re used to writing papers instead of typing them, if you’re used to researching via books vs research on the Internet, if you don’t communicate with your teacher via email but have to only wait until you’re face to face… I don’t think this works honestly.
I’m 41 yrs old, we had some sort of computer we played on in 5th grade. It was slower than molasses! Other than that we weren’t techy until 9th and that still wasn’t anything to write home about. So basically, these kids are being taught the way I was taught, the “old fashioned” way. Back the, you used an encyclopedia to search a topic for a report. I don’t think kids today know how to do that. Most can’t survive without the internet to get their homework done and it’s not their fault. So why take it away?
now, I can not fall in asleep without my cellphone, feel anxious and uncomfortable without phone when in bathroom, and every two minutes at classes I will take out my phone without knowing what to do with it. when staying with strangers, I would rather play my phone instead talking with them to eliminate embarrassing. mobile devices is ruining my lives, Im becoming more introvert and unsociable, lacking many social skills.
iPads, iPhones, and laptops are not for little kids. I completely agree with this. I never knew that schools like this existed. The narrator sounds clueless. Or maybe she gives her children her old iPhone so she doesn’t have to deal with them and can’t understand. 8:38 How can they be used efficiently in the classroom? Set up the teacher’s desk BEHIND THE CLASS instead of in front. This way, the teacher can keep tabs on all screens at once. Sadly, administration usually doesn’t understand this and bucks this—putting the technology teacher in the traditional front of the class so that they cannot possibly know what their students are really up to behind their screens. Whose side is administration on anyway? The kids poor attention spans that want to wander??
Tech Free School? Our school neither support technology! Every morning we need to clean the entire classroom, comfort room, outside room and gardening for an hour. Each students has their own designated work and it is rotating assignments for chores. Tuitions for the entire year is only less than $1 for test papers. We have Computer Subject but that is only limited for 3-5 students each PC. We knit, We crochet, We made recycling projects and a lot of DIY’s, make some brooms out of palm trees, make some dustpan out of tin containers, and more! Our bags are made of fish nets and some are made of pandan leaf! When rain pours, we grab some banana leaf to made some umbrellas where Our meal is also wrapped and the aroma is perfect during lunch. I know we are so outdated in terms of technology but these students became doctors, engineers, teachers, IT’s, lawyers, Chief Officers, General Military, Ship Captain, Pilots and Businessmen.
Too much screen time has proven over and over again to be a disadvantage to developing minds, yet we give iPads and chromebooks to elementary school students. Schools celebrate 1:1 technology but many of these children are struggling with writing. I have special needs children and technology is bad news for them, but the school forces it on them and all children. Our children aren’t learning the basics and technology isn’t perfect. It’s a disservice to the children.
Average Kids are depressed in tandem with device usage because the average social interaction for a tween or teen is spent looking at overfiltered social profiles of other teens. Those lives, of course, look perfect. Pictures look perfect, friends in abundance. Makes a kid feel like they could never live up to that standard.
Everything in moderation. Both schooling (back to nature and tech) should be interwoven with good parenting and good teaching. My kids (2 and 6 years old) both use tech. However, my husband and I have limited. It’s only for at home, they don’t play with our phones. When we are outside, we are doing outside things (looking at nature, talking and playing with friends, etc.). The ONLY tech they are allowed to use outdoors is a camera for now. They were taught and only use mobile phones for emergencies only. Later, we’ll get them telescopes to look at the stars and planets, binoculars to look at birds, and so on. It really makes me sad to see young children glued to tablets, phones, or computers 24/7.
I went to waldorf teacher training in sacramento and it was like a religious cult. They even brought in a “doctor” to recommend not vaccinating your children. Most waldorf schools lack diversity. I am not joking they even said no brown or black crayons were allowed because they were condsiederd to bring darkness into the child?! what the heck? I quit after 1 summer and am proud to be a public school teacher. Also these people are rich don’t need a quality education because they buy their way into private colleges when they don’t do well on the SATs.
While I do think we over-rely on tech nowadays, this is one of those issues that should be solved primarily at home, but the parents are making the teachers do it instead. Again. If you spend all day glued to your email in-box, Netflix, and never learn to work with your own hands, then so will your kids. That’s just the environment they were raised in. So instead of shipping you kids to a fancy ass private school, maybe just lead by example.
The problem is that it’s not tech in general, it’s certain forms of media that are coercive in a predatory way. For example the YouTube recommend is predatory and therefore you could still allow article learning but in a measured, intentional way. Media consumption ideally would be more like a wine tasting than a keg stand
I have heard so many comments on here about people extolling the virtues of graphing calculators. But MANY STUDENTS USING GRAPHING CALCULATORS HAVE NO CONCEPT OR IDEA OF WHAT THEY ARE ACTUALLY DOING … THEY JUST KNOW HOW TO PLUG IN NUMBERS. They cannot fathom how to use their brains to obtain approximations. They have no idea how to use a slide rule, etc. I use to go to college and these people SUFFERED when they had to use a DIFFERENT GRAPHING CALCULATOR IN COLLEGE. THEY COULD NOT EVEN UNDERSTAND THAT DIFFERENT CALCULATORS USED DIFFERENT KINDS OF INPUT LOGIC. They had NO IDEA what they were doing and were TOTALLY LOST. Using your MIND FIRST – before technology – gives you a logical basis to be able to use ANY KIND OF TECHNOLOGY EFFECTIVELY AND ACTUALLY KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING – especially how to find out with your own mind, what you are doing wrong and how to correct it. In college, I could use anyone’s calculator and put in data – and other students were so amazed by this. (The really bad professors FORCED everyone to use the same calculator. But the great teachers taught KNOWLEDGE and retaught students how to actually think and use ANY GRAPHING CALCULATOR). ANY TRAINED MONKEY CAN INPUT DATA AND PLUG IN NUMBERS. Knowledge is KNOWING WHAT YOU ARE DOING AND BEING ABLE TO DO IT SEVERAL DIFFERENT WAYS ON MANY DIFFERING PLATFORMS. And knowing what approach will work best for what problem. So many students only know ONE way to do something and have no idea why it actually works and cannot fathom why it doesn’t work for every problem.