Walking around my classroom in Shanghai, it's easy to be dazzled by the tech. Every student has a high-spec laptop, and the school's Learning Management System is genuinely impressive. But sometimes I look at a room full of children staring at screens and I wonder if we've accidentally digitised the soul out of the lesson. The technology can grow so thick that you lose sight of the people in the room.
Two extremes, both wrong
The tech evangelists think 1:1 iPads are the only way forward. The luddites want to go back to chalk and slate. Both are missing the point. The problem isn't the technology itself. It's where we're using it.
"Integrate everywhere" is a fantasy
The moderate view says we should "integrate" technology everywhere. Digital literacy is a core skill, they say. Screens should be seamless.
But anyone who's actually taught knows: a screen is a distraction machine. Give thirty kids laptops and tell me they all stay focused on the task. They don't. They're on Minecraft or group chats or YouTube. The idea that children will magically self-regulate because the learning is "engaging" is... optimistic.
What I actually do
I keep the classroom analogue. Pen, paper, face-to-face debate. This is where we read Hamlet and argue about it. This is where human connection happens.
But I give the AI to the kids at home. That's where personalisation actually makes sense. A paper worksheet is one-size-fits-all. An adaptive algorithm can give each child exactly the right challenge. It marks their work and gives me a dashboard on Monday morning. The machine handles the mechanical stuff so I can focus on the humans.
Why the split works
When students write by hand, they process information more slowly and deeply. Laptops closed means notebooks open. We listen to each other. We look at the whiteboard, not our own private worlds. You can't have a proper discussion if everyone is hiding behind a MacBook.
But homework? That's where the tech optimists are right. An adaptive platform can give the struggling student more practice and the advanced student harder problems. Both get what they need. And I get data that actually changes how I teach.
What I'd suggest
If you're a teacher, try three things:
Go laptop-free for a week. Focus on speaking, handwriting, and actually looking at each other. See what happens.
Use adaptive platforms for homework. Let the machine handle retrieval practice and instant feedback.
Use the data in class. Show the results of last night's AI work on your screen. Target your teaching based on what the dashboard tells you.
Don't feel guilty for banning screens in class. You're not being old-fashioned. You're being realistic. Keep the AI for the mechanical work at home. Keep the classroom for the human work.