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Over the past few years, as part of efforts to modernize education, many school districts — including the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) — began providing students with iPads or Chromebooks for classwork and homework.
What once looked like a helpful tool for remote and hybrid learning has, for many parents, become a growing source of frustration, worry, and even alarm. According to a recent investigation, a rising number of parents in Los Angeles now claim that these school-issued devices are having negative effects on their children — both academically and emotionally.
This NBC story sheds light on serious concerns about screen time, lack of parental controls, lowered academic focus, social disruption, and the blurred boundary between schoolwork and free time. For families mindful of media’s impact — the kind of readers Clean Cut Media serves — it’s a cautionary tale attention to.
What the Article Reports: Real Complaints from Real Parents
• Lack of parental oversight / control on iPads & Chromebooks
Many parents say their children’s school-issued devices come locked down in ways that prevent parents from placing any meaningful filters or time limits. Because the devices are managed by the school district (not parents), parents claim they have no way to monitor or restrict what their children view once the device leaves school.
That means even if parents have strict rules for home-use of personal devices, those rules don’t apply to school devices.
• Screen time overload — even for “schoolwork”
Some parents describe situations where children spend hours daily on school-issued iPads or Chromebooks — not just for homework, but watching videos on Youtube, playing games like MineCraft, or mindlessly clicking through apps. One parent told of their child repeatedly wetting themselves because they were so fixated on the iPad. Another claimed their child ran away from home — not because of bullying, but because they didn’t want to lose access to their iPad.
These anecdotes echo broader worries that heavy school screens are replacing — rather than supporting — real learning, social interaction, and healthy habits.
• Academic decline, social withdrawal, emotional issues
Several parents and even substitute teachers described declines in focus, class participation, and overall academic performance since devices became ubiquitous. Others stated that children increasingly skip social play or offline hobbies and instead retreat into their Ipads & Chromebooks at home. Some described irritability, addiction-like behavior, and even mood swings tied to how much time their kid spent on the device.
• Digital homework doubles as after-school screen time
In many cases, homework assignments are delivered via apps and platforms accessible only on the school-issued device. That means even diligent, homework-focused kids often end up spending multiple hours a day staring at their Ipads & Chromebooks — far beyond what parents would choose or allow.
One parent recounted doing a short assignment with their child and realizing it amounted to more “gaming” than learning. Others described nights where the child’s iPad became more about socializing or distraction than study.
• Lack of transparency about what kids are doing
Because the apps, assignments, and even questions are considered “proprietary,” many parents say they don’t even know what their kids’ homework consists of. Some expressed frustration that these school controlled Ipads & Chromebooks effectively shuts caregivers out of any oversight or understanding of content — meaning a literal black box for what children are watching or reading.
• Frustration with the one-size-fits-all approach
Not all children are the same. Parents argue that younger students (especially elementary schoolers) don’t need hours of screen time and may struggle with self-regulation. However, the school-issued devices don’t differentiate between ages or development levels — and many parents feel the blanket approach is misguided.
One parent referred to the mandated device usage as “giving them a bigger version of a phone” — a statement that echoes the concerns many families already have about personal smartphones.
What’s Being Done (or Proposed)
The article notes that the use of school-issued devices varies by school — in some cases the device is only used on campus; in others, it goes home every day. Some schools use it in conjuction with verbal instruction. However, it also is not uncommon, to walk into a classroom and find every child looking down on their Ipads or Chromebooks with headphones without genuine interaction with the teacher!
But in many districts (including parts of LAUSD), the policy is: send the device home. Which means all the same risks and concerns parents usually associate with phones now apply to iPads and Chromebooks that kids need for school.
Some parents are pushing back. There are growing calls for:
- More option-based device programs — allowing families to choose whether to use a school-issued chromebook depending on their home environment.
- Stronger parental transparency & control — especially over filtering, time use, and homework content, to avoid children replacing learning with idle screen time.
- Hybrid education models — where offline, paper-oriented work and traditional teaching methods are still part of the day, limiting screen exposure.
- Reassessing whether pushing device ubiquity at younger ages is actually beneficial or harmful — especially for elementary-age kids.
Why This Matters for Families Concerned About Media Influence
If your household values mindful media consumption — like many Clean Cut Media readers — this story is a warning sign.
- Screen-time addiction and passive consumption don’t always start with personal devices. They can begin with what schools provide.
- Even well-meaning educational intentions (homework, digital lessons) can lead to unintended consequences when oversight and moderation are missing.
- The shift of education onto screens — especially for young kids — may contribute to weakened social skills, reduced imagination, increased anxiety or attention issues, and blurred boundaries between work and free time.
- Parents & families must speak up and bring up these concerns to their schools.
In short: schools giving kids iPads and Chromebooks isn’t just a neutral technology upgrade. It’s a cultural shift — one that changes the way children see school, play, relationships, and time itself.
As a parent or educator concerned about media’s influence, this should raise red flags.
What Parents Can Do Right Now
If your child is using a school-issued device (or may soon be), here are some practical steps to consider:
- Ask the school what kind of monitoring, time-tracking, and parental controls are in place. If there are none, that should be a conversation starter.
- Set family rules for after-school device use — even if the device “belongs to school.” Decide when it comes home, and when it stays off.
- Encourage offline homework options — ask teachers if assignments can be submitted on paper instead of only through apps, especially for younger children.
- Monitor for signs of screen addiction or emotional distress — mood swings, isolation, poor sleep, withdrawal from friends/hobbies.
- Advocate — join or form parent groups or local school-board meetings to push for balanced tech use, transparency, and optional device policies.
Final Thoughts
The move toward device-driven education might have started with good intentions — flexibility, modern learning, good preparation for a digital future. But as the NBC News story and many parent accounts show, the risks may outweigh the benefits when oversight, moderation, and parental involvement are stripped away.
What we need — especially for younger kids — isn’t more screens. It’s discernment, limits, and human interaction.
Until schools recognize that and partner honestly with parents, many kids may end up with lessons that reach beyond school content — and affect their social development, mental well-being, and relationship with media for years to come.