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Earlier this week, I found myself gathered with a small group of parents when our conversation turned to technology. We shared our thoughts, fears, hopes, and probably a few frustrations, a common conversations happening among parents. How much technology is too much? Are screens hurting our children? Are we preparing them for a future we can’t imagine, or sacrificing important parts of childhood in the process?

I have spent a lot of time thinking about this, both professionally and at home. And I keep coming back to one belief: When used intentionally and with care, technology has the potential to be an incredibly powerful learning partner.

Let’s start with the research, because there are real reasons to be cautious.

First, handwriting matters. Researchers have found more elaborate patterns of brain connectivity during handwriting, particularly in regions associated with learning and memory. The physical act of forming letters engages the brain differently than pressing keys. There is a neurological reason we shouldn’t be so quick to replace pencils with keyboards.

Then there is scrolling. Studies have found connections between excessive social media use and difficulties with attention, working memory, executive functioning, and mental health. Executive functioning includes the skills that help us plan, regulate emotions, resist distractions, and follow through on tasks. These skills develop well into young adulthood, giving us good reason to set limits on scrolling time.

A 2025 analysis of 71 studies involving more than 98,000 participants found that greater use of “shorts,” like TikTok and YouTube Shorts, was associated with poorer attention and inhibitory control, our ability to resist distractions and impulses. While this doesn’t establish cause and effect, consider the difference between watching a stream of constantly changing videos and spending 30 minutes building with Legos, reading, or solving a challenging problem. Both capture attention, but they ask very different things of the developing brain.

So, with all that research, do we get rid of technology? I don’t think so.

There is an educational framework called TPACK, which brings together what we teach, how we teach it, and the technology we use. The magic isn’t in the technology itself. It happens when a skilled teacher combines all three to create learning that is richer, deeper, or more accessible.

We see this right here at Tatnall.

Our fourth graders have become entrepreneurs. Building on third-grade financial literacy, they develop products, explore digital design and AI tools, and market their creations through their own online store, Tatnall.shop. Technology isn’t replacing learning. It’s allowing children to experience entrepreneurship in ways that would have been nearly impossible in an elementary classroom a generation ago.

Our second graders offer another example through their study of camouflage and animal adaptations. After building creatures from tools and small bits, they use AI to create habitats and hide their creatures within the scenes inviting their friends to seek and find their camouflaged creatures. They are moving beyond learning a scientific concept to applying and demonstrating their understanding.

Perhaps most meaningful is the support technology provides children who learn differently. Text-to-speech can make content accessible to developing readers. Speech-to-text allows students who struggle with written expression to share their thinking. Adaptive tools provide targeted practice. These technologies don’t replace instruction; they remove barriers that might otherwise prevent children from showing what they know.

This is where I think our conversation needs to shift.

Education has a long history of pendulum swings. We discover something new, become excited about its potential, and sometimes swing so far in one direction that we lose sight of what was valuable before. For years, the question was how much technology we could put into classrooms. Now, in some circles, it’s how much we can take out.

I would argue that neither is the right question.

Instead, we should ask whether technology is making learning better. Is it helping children think deeply, create something meaningful, or access learning that might otherwise be out of reach? Or is it replacing an experience better suited to a pencil, a book, a conversation, or a little time to wonder?

I keep thinking back to that group of parents. Beneath our different opinions, we were hoping for the same thing. We want our children to grow up curious, capable, and confident. We want them prepared for the world they are inheriting without losing the experiences that make childhood special. Because in the end, our goal isn’t to raise children who are good at using technology. It’s to raise children who know how to think, create, connect, and contribute to the world, with or without it.