Board hears classroom technology update; trustees press for better evidence on screen time

Chief Technology Officer Mike Morrison and instructional technology staff told the board how the district is integrating classroom technology with unit design and social‑emotional goals, and the trustees questioned whether students' screen time and engagement are being adequately monitored.

Morrison said unit redesign has produced roughly 190 new or revised units that more deliberately integrate technology for purposeful learning rather than passive consumption. Instructional Technology TOSA Kim Vogue and high school tech leads described classroom practices such as jigsaw activities, Pear Deck for formative checks, Formative and other tools, and selective AI‑enabled tasks (transcribed as Snorkel) that provide verbal and written feedback on student work. Morrison said elementary usage generally averaged one hour or less for primary grades and rose with grade level; high school usage varied from about three to four hours depending on schedule.

Board members and parents pushed back on the raw minutes metric: Trustee comments emphasized that a single minute total does not distinguish between short purposeful device activities and long stretches of passive screen time. A board member asked whether the district had surveyed students directly; staff said the current teacher surveys included time estimates and activity types but agreed to collect more student‑level qualitative data and to expand classroom shadowing practices that allow teachers to "shadow" students' days to see firsthand how devices are used.

What happens next: Staff said they will gather additional student input, compile more qualitative evidence about in‑class experiences, and return with data on the student perspective and on monitoring/mitigation practices. The board encouraged continued focus on teacher training and unit design.