Kids Spend Hours in School on Screens. And for What?: Editorial

Feb. 11, 2026, 11:00 AM UTC

US schools spent $30 billion on educational technology in 2024, roughly 10 times the amount they spent on textbooks. By one estimate, this sum could double in six years. Yet as children spend more time on school-issued screens, learning is deteriorating. Before spending another dime, school districts should rethink this “edtech” experiment.

For more than a century, IQ scores across the West climbed steadily as schooling increased. This trend reversed about two decades ago. Gen Z, recent findings show, is the first generation to be less cognitively capable than their parents — by IQ as well as other measures including numeracy and creativity ...

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