Education Department Defends Classroom Tech in New Federal Guidance

Brief Overview

The U.S. Department of Education issued a defense of technology use in classrooms in a Dear Colleague letter released Thursday, asserting that the use of education technology is a separate matter from the use of recreational technology.

The letter, signed by Kirsten Baesler, assistant secretary in the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, acknowledged the growing concerns among parents, educators, and policymakers regarding students' screen time in schools. However, the letter stated that these concerns require both "thoughtful consideration" and "careful distinction."

According to the letter, policies on screen time and technology use in schools should be determined by states and local communities. It noted that stakeholders' questions should center on whether education technology is improving learning and student outcomes — not on whether students and teachers should use technology at all.

Context and Significance

The Dear Colleague letter marks one of the first instances in which the Education Department has taken a position in the K-12 screen time debate since the issue gained momentum across the U.S. earlier this year.

Policies limiting or banning screen time in classrooms have been implemented in some school systems — including Los Angeles Unified School District — and in at least six states in 2026. These changes have emerged as parents, community leaders, and policymakers raise questions about the impact of technology on children's well-being and data privacy, just years after the COVID-19 pandemic catalyzed the widespread adoption of 1:1 device programs in schools.

However, school leaders and K-12 technology experts have in recent months cautioned against state and district policies that focus solely on limiting or banning the amount of time students spend on screens. For instance, the Consortium for School Networking released guidance earlier in August that emphasized the importance of reducing "low-value" screen use and ensuring that devices are used for clear instructional purposes.

The Education Department's Dear Colleague letter, which serves as guidance rather than a measure of federal enforcement, also advises that policymaking on technology use in schools "should focus on educational value rather than screen exposure alone."

Benefits of Education Technology

The letter highlighted that education technology has expanded access to learning opportunities that may have been impossible a generation ago. This includes helping students in rural and isolated communities access tutoring, or using digital learning to assist schools with persistent staffing challenges by connecting students to qualified teachers — even if those teachers are not local.

Additionally, the letter stated that digital assessment tools have transformed educators' ability to measure and support student instruction. Technology has also expanded educational access to students with disabilities who use assistive technology such as text-to-speech, speech-to-text, or real-time captioning.

"These examples illustrate why education technology should not be evaluated solely by the amount of time students spend using it," the letter said. "The same technology that can distract a student during recreational use can also connect a student in a rural community to advanced coursework, enable a student with dyslexia to access complex text through assistive technology, or allow a homebound student to remain engaged in classroom learning."

Recommendations for Policymakers

The department suggested that states and districts reevaluating their education technology policies should:

• Clarify differences between policies addressing recreational technology use and those overseeing instructional technology.
• Examine education technology based on a tool's demonstrated learning outcomes and instructional value instead of just screen time.
• Look for evidence of effectiveness and positive outcomes when considering education technology procurement and renewals.
• Create processes for reviewing the implementation and effects of education technology tools to ensure those investments are meeting institutional goals.
• Support professional development focused on helping teachers integrate technology effectively in instruction.

Broader Federal Context

Meanwhile, other federal agencies under the Trump administration have already begun weighing in on students' screen time use.

The Federal Communications Commission has cited school screen time debates as it considers making sweeping changes or even eliminating the federal E-rate program, which helps connect schools to affordable internet services. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services also declared harmful screen use by children and teens to be a "public health concern" in a May surgeon general's advisory.