Morano asks about UFT's paper testing proposal and DOE's COVID screen time hindsight

But for this year, that's where it lives.

And again, we want to empower our schools.

We want to ask our schools, too, to just be mindful that there is that balance, that today is not the day.

Even in my testimony when I shared, if we're going to the computer lab today,

that it's outside of the instructional day, but it does become part of the student's experience that day, and we want to truly limit technology.

I know the UFT is calling for a paper and pencil testing option for every student.

Would DOE support giving students and parents that option?

We will continue to work with our labor partners on some options that might be available to us going forward.

I also want to ask you to look backwards for a moment.

You know, they say hindsight's 20-20.

I'm going to ask you to use the prism of hindsight.

Your own testimony says routine individual screen use can crowd out hands-on learning, social interaction.

action, play, and teacher-guided instructions.

Those things were true three years ago, too.

So looking back, without blaming anybody, does DOE believe we allowed an emergency response to COVID to become too much of a permanent...

Educational model?

I think this current administration, from our mayor to our chancellor to myself to this council, I think we would agree to that.

And I think that was very beautifully said in Councilmember Krishnan's testimony as well.

We thought we were sending our kids back and the laptops were going to close.

And I do think that the moment that we're in, in this national conversation, emerging research, the feedback we're getting from

community stakeholders has allowed us to say it is...

We do need to look at this.

We do need to look at this.

We need to slow it down.

We need to study it better.

And that is why we're in a one-year, this is a seismic shift, to your point, for our schools.

We are so entangled in so much of the digital use in our schools.

So we wanted to offer a very developmental, research-based, and like what does year one of this look like that our schools can continue to thrive in?

And so I would agree with you, and I think that is why we're exactly at this policy.