Gadgets creating more challenges than solutions in schools, says JAPSS president

WESTERN BUREAU:

Linvern Wright, the president of the Jamaica Association of Principals of Secondary Schools (JAPSS), is expressing concern that the proliferation of technology as a learning tool in schools may be creating more problems than it solves while robbing children of critical skills they would have learned traditionally.

Wright was speaking during an online forum on the challenges faced by the education sector in 2025, held last Saturday evening on the National Religious Partnership Radio platform.

“There are disagreements about this, but I really believe that one of the things that we are recognising as schools is that gadgets are presenting more challenges than they are solving problems in schools. All the research is showing that these things are more of a distraction than they are of assistance, especially if things are not properly organised pedagogically,” said Wright.

“Because technology is attractive and it is something that gets the dopamine [a brain hormone vital for movement and focus] in children going, I think we have mistaken that kind of dopamine response for effectiveness. However, I think it has more effects on the brain that are adverse where education and child development are concerned, that I don’t think we are paying sufficient attention to,” Wright added.

The JAPSS president specifically pointed to children’s writing ability as an example of the impact of technology on learning, in a society where persons are more focused on using devices such as phones, tablets, and computer screens.

“One of the things that our children are doing less now is that our children are writing less. All the research has shown that, when a child writes notes, versus typing notes, it actually has a better effect on memory and on storing of long-term memory, because of the processes that are involved,” said Wright. “Also, if you invest more money in teacher competence, the gains that you would get in education would be far more than we are spending now in technology instead of teacher development.”

CONCERNS

His concern echoes a warning that the United Nations’ education, science and culture agency UNESCO issued in a 2023 report, which stated that learning benefits may be affected if technology is used in excess or if it replaces qualified teachers.

Meanwhile, counselling psychologist Dr Philbert Amiel suggested that while children may retain better long-term memory through traditional learning skills versus use of technology, a balance should be sought in terms of which method may help students on an individual level.

“When a child writes, the brain retains that information to a greater degree, compared to when a child types something on a screen. It is important for us to understand the dynamism between these two forms of learning, because there are some kids that are going to progress at a greater rate using technology, and there are some that are going to progress at a greater rate using the old learning style,” said Amiel.

“What we need to do is not so much to focus on one against the other, but to focus on which one better serves that particular child or group. For Jamaicans, we are somewhat new in terms of technological advancement in a whole lot of areas, and I think, the more we understand the dynamics at play, the more we are better able to help the education process as our children develop,” Amiel added.

christopher.thomas@gleanerjm.com