Eyeing Concerns over School Device Use

Digital devices are nowadays widely used in schools ranging from kindergartens to universities, and these have significantly changed the lives of teachers and students. However, official data shows that 45.7 percent of elementary school students suffer from poor eyesight and over 100 million elementary and secondary school students are near-sighted. In late August 2018, the Ministry of Education ordered that students are not allowed to take smartphones or tablets to class, and at most 30 percent of teaching assignments could be conducted on digital devices. Teachers are encouraged to assign paper-based homework instead of on digital devices. Educators argue that workload reduction and doing more physical and outdoor activity is crucial to protect students’ eyesight.