Sweden brings more books and handwriting practice back to its tech-heavy schools

As young children went back to school across Sweden in August, many of their teachers were putting a new emphasis on printed books, quiet reading time, and handwriting practice and devoting less time to tablets, independent online research, and keyboarding skills. The return to more traditional ways of learning is a response to politicians and experts questioning whether the country's hyper-digitalized approach to education, including the introduction of tablets in nursery schools, had led to a decline in basic skills. Swedish Minister for Schools Lotta Edholm announced in August in a statement that the government wants to reverse the decision by the National Agency for Education to make digital devices mandatory in preschools. It plans to go further and to completely end digital learning for children under age 6, the ministry also told The Associated Press. Some learning deficits may have resulted from the coronavirus pandemic or reflect a growing number of immigrant students who don't speak Swedish as their first language, but overuse of screens during school lessons may cause youngsters to fall behind in core subjects, education experts say. In a report published in August, UNESCO issued an “urgent call for appropriate use of technology in education.” The report urges countries to speed up internet connections at schools, but at the same time warns that technology in education should be implemented in a way so that it never replaces in-person, teacher-led instruction and supports the shared objective of quality education for all. To counter Sweden's decline in 4th grade reading performance, the Swedish government announced an investment worth 685 million kronor (60 million euros or $64.7 million) in book purchases for the country’s schools this year. Another 500 million kronor will be spent annually in 2024 and 2025 to speed up the return of textbooks to schools. “The Swedish government does have a valid point when saying that there is no evidence for technology improving learning, but I think that’s because there is no straightforward evidence of what works with technology,” Neil Selwyn, a professor of education at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia, said. “Technology is just one part of a really complex network of factors in education.” This article was provided by The Associated Press.