The app is called Opal. According to Opal's CEO and founder Kenneth Schlenker, Opal helps users with daily screen time, blocking blocks games and social media.
Seventy-six percent of public schools in the United States have now put some sort of ban in place, reports Just the News. However, according to Schlenker, that is not fixing the deep-rooted issue. He is quoted as saying that losing phones in class means kids are not learning healthy habits, but rather they are "just losing access."
Tina Descovich is CEO and co-founder of Moms for Liberty.
"We're entering a new era between phones, AI, and all the technology in classrooms, and what we're learning over the last several years is that it's not all that it cracked up to be. So, I welcome any opportunity to put some more parameters and safeguards around some of these technological tools that have been placed in the hands of our children," says Descovich.
The question lies on whether there should be a complete ban on technology in classrooms and student should go back to paper textbooks, notes on notebook paper, etc.
"I think that there should be a variety of options for students. All students learn differently, and that's the great thing about the American education system — we can have some schools provide paper and pencil options only and others that can be full-STEM and immersed in technology," states Descovich.
Descovich says that she thinks, overall, it's not realistic to ban all technology from K-12 schools.
"I do think we can be smart and can set parameters — maybe have no technology for our youngest learners and then increase it as they get older with parameters, with guidelines — to keep our children safe and protected from the bad things that are out there, from the dopamine addiction that we know now happens,” says Descovich. “I think this isn't going away anytime soon, and we have to have these open and healthy conversations about it."
Descovich concludes by staying that she thinks that the future of education is going include technology, all that is left is just figuring out how to do it safely.
