Senate File 516 - Introduced SENATE FILE 516 BY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION (SUCCESSOR TO SF 237) A BILL FOR An Act directing the department of education to convene a 1 working group to study the impact of technology on the 2 cognitive function and academic performance of students. 3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 4 TLSB 2576SV (2) 91 jda/jh
S.F. 516 Section 1. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION WORKING GROUP 1 IMPACT OF TECHNOLOGY ON COGNITIVE LEARNING. 2 1. The department of education, in collaboration with the 3 department of health and human services, shall convene and 4 provide administrative support to a working group that shall 5 examine research related to the impact of school-provided 6 technology on the cognitive function and academic performance 7 of students. For purposes of this section, school-provided 8 technology includes laptop computers, online learning 9 management systems, and classroom slide show presentations. 10 2. The membership of the working group shall include but 11 not be limited to educators, mental health professionals, and 12 parents of school-age children. 13 3. Any expenses incurred by a member of the working group 14 shall be the responsibility of the individual member or the 15 respective entity represented by the member. 16 4. The working group shall submit its findings and 17 recommendations in a report to the general assembly by December 18 31, 2025. The report shall include recommendations on best 19 practices related to the use of school-provided technology in 20 educational contexts with a focus on ways to mitigate possible 21 negative impacts on the social and behavioral development, 22 attention span, mental concentration, and learning ability of 23 students. 24 EXPLANATION 25 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 26 the explanations substance by the members of the general assembly. 27 This bill directs the department of education, in 28 collaboration with the department of health and human services, 29 to convene a working group to examine research related to 30 the impact of school-provided technology on the cognitive 31 function and academic performance of students. The membership 32 of the working group is required to include but not be limited 33 to educators, mental health professionals, and parents of 34 school-age children. The bill requires the working group to 35 -1- LSB 2576SV (2) 91 jda/jh 1/ 2
S.F. 516 provide a report to the general assembly by December 31, 2025, 1 detailing the working groups findings and recommendations. 2 The report must include recommendations on best practices 3 related to the use of school-provided technology in educational 4 contexts. 5 -2- LSB 2576SV (2) 91 jda/jh 2/ 2