Tech-free elementary schools
We are relocating to the Berkeley/ Oakland area and are looking for technology free elemetary schools. We have taken tours of both Waldorf schools and are wondering if there are additional schools that offer this kind of screen-free environment. We are also curious how much screen time kids are getting in the Berkeley and Oakland public schools. Our son will be entering the 1st grade; where we have been living, the disctrict considers itself "tech forward" and thus, from kindergarten on, technology is integrated (youtube, g suite, iready, star fall, etc). We currently homeschool and are trying to get away from this model in the event we opt to send him into the classroon environment. Any suggestion/ info is appreciated!
Sep 12, 2019
Parent Replies
Check out Walden in Berkeley. It’s not entirely tech-free but most of the learning is hands-on and there is a big emphasis on integrating creative arts with the academic program. Our kids loved it there:)
I think you will be hard-pressed to find a public elementary school anywhere in Berkeley/Oakland that is completely tech-free. State standardized testing, which begins in grade 3, is now administered on computers, so the kids have to be prepared for that. And there's also an awareness that some kids will not receive any kind of digital education at home, so they need to be introduced to computers at school in order to access all the resources their more affluent peers can. With all that said... my kids are at Chabot Elementary in Oakland, and a year(ish) ago, we surveyed classroom teachers in grades 2-5 on how many hours per week computers were in use in their classrooms. (We have zero computer use in kindergarten and very limited use in some grade 1 classrooms.) The very highest users averaged around 5-7 hours per week, and the lowest were down around 2 hours per week. The average was in the 3-5 hours per week range. In almost all cases, the teachers did not have access to a full set of computers (i.e., one computer per child), and classroom practices at our school often involve dividing the class into small groups. So one group is working on chromebooks while another group is working directly with the teacher while a third group is doing a paper-and-pencil activity. So... even if the classroom averaged 5 hours a week of computer use, that rarely (maybe never?) translates to an individual child staring at a screen for 5 hours a week.
This is an area that has been subject to quite a bit of change (and quite a bit of evaluation) over the past few years at our school, and I would guess that's true at other area schools as well.
When I was looking for a school for my son, I too had concerns about the use of technology in place of hands-on exploration and learning.
I ultimately enrolled my son in Crestmont School, where he currently attends Kindergarten. It's a small co-op K-8 school located in the Richmond Hills community with active parent involvement. I was drawn to the school, in large part, by the school's philosophy of educating the "whole child" and the active approach to learning. Good luck!
For a truly unique media-free school I highly recommend you take a tour of Crestmont School in the Richmond Hills. It’s a small, progressive K-8 that truly believes in project based, hands-on experiencial learning. The teachers are engaging and supportive of all learning styles. Class sizes are small (12-15), the student body is diverse the community is welcoming and warm. The school places great emphasis on social emotional growth, creativity and inspiring children to become lifelong learners. Students in the lower grades (K-4) do not use technology in the classroom and there is no expectation that children will use media at home. I believe 5th graders learn typing and do use some technology for research.
My son is in 2nd grade and has attended since kindergarten, we are extremely happy with our experience so far and he is still excited to go to school each day. Please check it out https://www.crestmontschool.org/