Letters to the Editor Washougal tech levy is ‘irresponsible’
As a stepparent of two children in the Washougal School District, I fully support the Educational Programs & Operations Levy on our February ballot. I do not support the Technology Levy.
While familiarity with computer technology is essential to our children’s success, WSD’s computer-centered curriculum, Amplify, includes far too much classroom screen time.
I have observed — at “take your parent to school day” — and heard from teachers at parent-teacher conferences that Amplify is restrictive, cumbersome and decreases hands-on learning for subjects like science.
My children and their friends are lukewarm-to-outright-critical toward Amplify: it’s boring; it’s glitchy; they’re waiting for teachers to troubleshoot with other students; they’re finding ways around the restrictions to play games or browse the internet during class.
Our children’s curriculum should be driven by their excellent teachers — not a company trying to sell as many software licenses as possible. Instead, we should increase funding for arts and physical education. Both have been shown in numerous studies to improve overall educational outcomes and combat the negative effects of screen time, which include increased incidence of ADHD, depression and anxiety.
