For 25 years, schools chased the same promise.
More technology would create smarter students.
More devices.
More screens.
More digital learning.
The “future ready” classroom became the goal.
In 2024 alone, U.S. schools spent more than $30 billion on laptops and tablets.
That was roughly 10 times more than textbook spending.
The idea was that putting a computer in every student’s hands would unlock better learning.
But the results are raising uncomfortable questions.
Neuroscientist Jared Cooney Horvath told a Senate committee that Gen Z is the first generation in modern history to score lower on standardized tests than the generation before it.
PISA and OECD data show declines in areas like reading, math, and problem solving.
This happened during the same period when students had more access to technology than any generation before them.
That is the part people are struggling with.
The tools improved.
The outcomes did not.
Research comparing screen reading with paper reading keeps finding the same problem.
Students often understand less when reading on devices.
They skim more.
They remember less.
They process information more shallowly.
The devices designed to improve learning also created a constant source of distraction.
Teachers are now reporting students showing gaps in basic skills.
Some struggle with simple computer functions like email or keyboard shortcuts.
The technology was supposed to create more independent students.
Instead, many students seem more dependent on apps, searches, and digital assistance to complete basic tasks.
Then there is the incentive problem.
Schools received grants.
Companies sold billions of dollars in hardware.
“Innovation” became an easy selling point.
Buying thousands of laptops looks like progress.
Measuring whether students can focus, think deeply, and remember information is much harder.
The irony is that some technology executives who helped build the digital world have been known to limit screen use for their own children while schools pushed more devices into classrooms.
Nobody is arguing technology has no place in education.
The question is whether schools confused having more technology with actually improving learning.
Because a classroom full of expensive devices does not mean much if students lose the ability to sit down, focus, and think deeply.
Fortune article: https://fortune.com/article/how-did-us-spending-30-billion-dollars-on-laptops-result-in-first-generation-less-cognitively-capable-than-parents/
Psychology Today on tech impact and Horvath testimony: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/recovery-from-brain-injury/202602/the-impact-of-tech-on-young-minds