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Fairfax County parents are pressing school officials to reconsider the growing role of screens and artificial intelligence in classrooms, warning that technology is being introduced without enough transparency or community input.
Several parents raised concerns at the Fairfax County School Board’s March 19 meeting. Most focused on FCPSOn, the program that provides every student, including kindergartners, with a laptop or tablet.
Jennifer Cheng, a member of FCPS Parents for Intentional Technology, said many families do not realize how extensively digital devices are used in schools, particularly among younger children. She argued that FCPS has not communicated those practices effectively.
“Many only learned this from their children who told them that iPad time, not recess, was their favorite part of their day,” Cheng said.
Alix Fetch acknowledged that technology literacy is important but said FCPS relies too heavily on screen-based instruction. Digital programs are sometimes used to occupy children while teachers work with small groups or provide individual instruction, she said.
“Research does show children can learn from these digital programs, but research also is clear on something more important: children learn best from teachers,” Fetch said. She added that the programs work best when an adult actively engages with the student and the material, which she said is not how they are currently being used.
Megan Durst called for younger students to use technology in computer labs or other controlled settings. She said the spread of digital platforms is also causing difficulties at home.
“The stimulation and reward loops built into these digital platforms create artificial dopamine spikes,” Durst said, leaving some children dysregulated and making it harder for families and teachers to limit screen dependence.
Parents also challenged the school division’s approach to artificial intelligence as officials continue developing a policy governing its classroom use.
Benjamin Van Every said FCPS is currently permitting “policy-loose AI” and urged officials to proceed more cautiously.
“Our kids get one chance to be kids and one chance to get an education,” he said. “Let’s please be less cavalier with that opportunity.”
Marie Maroun criticized the board for what she described as insufficient community engagement on both device distribution and the emerging AI policy. She contrasted the process with the more than two years spent discussing school boundaries and the time devoted to naming a new school.
“When it comes to AI in our children’s classrooms — a decision of far greater consequence — there is no such patience for the community’s voice,” Maroun said.
She urged FCPS to pause its technology plans until it creates a committee that includes parent representatives. Concrete safeguards should come before aspirational policy language, she said.
The School Board’s governance committee discussed a draft AI policy earlier in March. Officials hope to present a final version for approval by the full board before the end of the school year.