{"id":58296,"date":"2026-06-01T21:52:17","date_gmt":"2026-06-01T21:52:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/58296\/"},"modified":"2026-06-01T21:52:17","modified_gmt":"2026-06-01T21:52:17","slug":"new-york-teachers-union-backs-screen-and-ai-limits-for-young-students","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/58296\/","title":{"rendered":"New York teachers union backs screen and AI limits for young students"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sign up for Chalkbeat New York\u2019s free daily newsletter<\/a> to get essential news about NYC\u2019s public schools delivered to your inbox.<\/p>\n

The tide is quickly turning against screens and artificial intelligence in schools \u2014 at least in New York state.<\/p>\n

The state\u2019s teachers union is the latest to join the grassroots parent efforts to limit screens and AI, passing a resolution this weekend calling for a ban on individual students\u2019 screen use in prekindergarten through second grade, including online assessments. <\/p>\n

It also calls for banning student-facing AI for these young learners, as well as prohibiting AI chatbots for students under 16.<\/p>\n

Gov. Kathy Hochul also expressed concerns on Monday about screen time in schools. <\/p>\n

The resolution from New York State United Teachers, or NYSUT, which is the umbrella union of New York City\u2019s United Federation of Teachers, comes on the heels of a push for a nationwide strategy to curb technology use in schools from its parent union, the American Federation of Teachers. AFT President Randi Weingarten last week called for similar limits<\/a> in her \u201cdevices-down, eyes-up, hands-on\u201d plan.<\/p>\n

The resolution from the state teachers union comes as New York City is rethinking its policies on artificial intelligence in schools. Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels recently called AI the \u201cmost invasive technology that we\u2019ve seen\u201d<\/a> and signaled the Education Department may create clearer guardrails for the city\u2019s youngest students, after significant criticism of the city\u2019s initial draft policy<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cEducators are not anti-technology. We are pro-child,\u201d NYSUT President Melinda Person said in a statement on Monday. \u201cEvery decision made in the name of innovation must actually serve the students in our classrooms.\u201d<\/p>\n

We’re on a need-to-know basis.<\/p>\n

Every weekday morning, Chalkbeat New York is bringing thousands of subscribers the news on public schools and education policy that they need to start their day. Sign up for our free newsletter to join them.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Hochul said Monday that it is \u201cdefinitely worth looking into\u201d limiting screen time for younger students<\/a>. She would take a similar approach to studying this as she did before implementing banning cell phones, she said at a press conference celebrating the first year of the state\u2019s school cellphone ban<\/a>. <\/p>\n

\u201cI spent a year going around the state, gathering information, assessing it, analyzing it, and coming up with a really solid policy,\u201d Hochul said, \u201cso I would engage in that before I would give an answer on how I feel about this, but I\u2019m learning a lot as a parent and grandparent.\u201d<\/p>\n

Several districts or states are limiting or looking into limiting screens in schools. Los Angeles schools are moving to ban screens until second grade<\/a>. Iowa recently passed a law limiting screens<\/a> in schools. Tennessee and other states<\/a> are considering limits. <\/p>\n

How the national backlash to education technology<\/a> will affect classrooms in the nation\u2019s largest school district remains to be seen. An upper Manhattan superintendent instituted a \u201cscreen break\u201d last week<\/a> at a parent advocate\u2019s request. But the state teachers union is pressing for broader change.<\/p>\n

NYSUT\u2019s resolution, for instance, calls for banning online assessments for young children. Since the pandemic, schools across the five boroughs have been giving students assessments in reading and math three times a year<\/a> to gauge their progress. Many schools use online tools from i-Ready<\/a> or MAP Growth starting in kindergarten for the math assessments. (The Acadience Reading assessment for K-2 students is not device-based.)<\/p>\n

As New York transitions to digital standardized exams for students across the state in grades 3-8, some educators have raised concerns that test preparation will increasingly rely on devices, too. The union\u2019s resolution calls on the state to maintain paper and pencil options. <\/p>\n

Students are \u201cspending excessive time preparing for computer-based testing, completing mandated screen-based programs, and engaging in passive technology use that interrupts student-teacher engagement,\u201d the resolution states. <\/p>\n

A spokesperson for the state\u2019s Education Department did not respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n

The union\u2019s resolution also calls for requiring that using AI in any grade must be \u201ceducator-led\u201d and designed to \u201cpromote critical thinking, digital literacy, and civic readiness, rather than replace human instruction, creativity or judgment.\u201d<\/p>\n

Teacher unions are also trying to walk a tightrope as they navigate the latest education technology backlash. The AFT and New York City\u2019s teachers union, the United Federation of Teachers, launched a partnership last year with OpenAI and Microsoft to help train educators. <\/p>\n

\u201cThere are conversations at every level about how to scale back screen time for students, especially our youngest,\u201d Mary Vaccaro, the UFT\u2019s vice president for education, said in a statement.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt the same time, the UFT and its national union, the AFT, are trying to help educators better understand and navigate AI, whether that\u2019s learning how to protect their students or how to harness the tool for their own work.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alex Zimmerman is a senior reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Alex at azimmerman@chalkbeat.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Amy Zimmer is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat New York. Contact Amy at azimmer@chalkbeat.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Sign up for Chalkbeat New York\u2019s free daily newsletter to get essential news about NYC\u2019s public schools delivered…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":58297,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[33816,33817,9202,33818,24,33819,1483,33820,25,33821,33822,33823,33824,33825,2877,11441,5332,2500,33826,23957,2879,33827,4105,2501,33828,33829,10141,8073,8079,76,33830,33831,33832,33833,8531,2215,33834,130,33835,8838,33836,11857,599,21138,33837,6794,33838,2890,33839,33840,33841,33842,33843,8829,33844,572,7190,33845,33846,33847,33848,33849,6796,9552,33850,3708,1444,26,33851,33852,3712,134,33853,214,33854,2983,2898],"class_list":["post-58296","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ai","tag-2-3-years","tag-4-5-years","tag-access","tag-african-american-ethnicity","tag-ai","tag-alligator","tag-alphabet","tag-animal-likeness","tag-artificial-intelligence","tag-authentic","tag-authenticity","tag-boy","tag-boys","tag-caucasian","tag-childhood","tag-class","tag-classmate","tag-classroom","tag-close-up","tag-color-image","tag-connection","tag-convenience","tag-desk","tag-digital","tag-digital-tablet","tag-diverse-group","tag-diversity","tag-e-book","tag-e-reader","tag-education","tag-electronic-book","tag-elementary-age","tag-four-people","tag-girl","tag-girls","tag-horizontal","tag-indoors","tag-internet","tag-kindergarten","tag-knowledge","tag-latin-american-and-hispanic-ethnicity","tag-latina","tag-learning","tag-lesson","tag-letter-a","tag-literacy","tag-medium-group-of-objects","tag-mixed-race-person","tag-mobility","tag-multi-ethnic-group","tag-multicultural","tag-multiculturalism","tag-native-american-ethnicity","tag-online","tag-online-education","tag-people","tag-photography","tag-pre-k","tag-pre-kindergarten","tag-prekindergarten","tag-preschool","tag-preschooler","tag-reading","tag-real-people","tag-richmond","tag-school","tag-stem-education","tag-student","tag-tablet","tag-tablet-computer","tag-teaching","tag-technology","tag-together","tag-united-states","tag-using-computer","tag-virginia","tag-wireless-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58296","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=58296"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58296\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/58297"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=58296"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=58296"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=58296"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}