Results of Hyde School "No-Tech" Tuesday

Every Tuesday in September, Hyde School in Woodstock, Connecticut, experimented with its technology usage by participating in what they coined "No-tech" Tuesdays.

On each of the four Tuesdays, students and teachers were asked not to use technology for the day, a move to encourage face-to-face connectedness and sharpen social skills. For students, that meant mp3 players, laptops, and video games were left behind, among other items-out of sight, out of mind-to avoid temptation. For teachers, this was extended to teaching tools, such as I-pads and Eno Boards, as well as their own personal technology devices.

Wrapping up this experiment, Hyde School conducted an internet survey of students and faculty in order to see what people learned from it.

Students and faculty responded that they did their best to observe "No-tech" Tuesdays fully, with 65 percent of both groups saying they adhered to the technology black-out during those days.

Comments among students confirmed what many in their group previously assumed-a strong dependency on technology for work, play, and general communication, and a deep frustration in not being able to "plug in" for the day. One student comments: "I learned that you can survive without technology, but it makes most everything difficult."

Teachers at the school responded similarly to the students. A common thread among results in their group was their dependency on technology in and out of the classroom for both professional and personal obligations.

Assistant Head of School John Rigney says: "I recognized just how connected I was to my Blackberry and laptop. What is astonishing is that my Blackberry is not just a technological device, but also something I fidget with often�just to pass the time."

While many in the faculty group confirmed the importance of interpersonal communication, face-to-face contact with people, and the threat of becoming disconnected in the school community through technological connectedness, seventy-five percent expressed concern that it slowed down their production.

"It was great to focus on having real conversations with people to move the day, work, and projects forward; letting go of convenience and shifting to low gear," says Rigney. "It forced us all to be creative in how to deliver our lessons, express curiosity, and learn from one another in a much more personal way."

And yet students replied with a resounding, "No," when asked if they would be interested in continuing the "No-tech" Tuesday moratorium. Faculty echoed this "no," though in a less resounding manner; they were overall more open to the possibility of having more no-tech days.

After witnessing the shuffle, confusion, and controversy around the "no-tech" experience Head of School Laura Gauld believes the experiment-whether participants liked it or not-hit a "home run" with regard to stimulating spirited and thoughtful dialogue.
"We're a school that develops character in students," Gauld says. "We're all about cultivating the leadership potential in every individual�and our school leaders now have had a learning opportunity with a 'no-tech' frame of reference from which they can draw a more open-minded perspective�something most individuals today don't have."

Moving forward, Gauld talked about trying a series of "pro-tech" days, where students and faculty would work together to improve their understanding of technology and increase their ability to use it.

The Hyde School's approach to education has been developed since 1966 at the Hyde boarding campuses in Bath, Maine, and Woodstock, Connecticut, and through public school initiatives in New Haven, Connecticut, Washington, DC, and Bronx and Brooklyn, New York. The organization, based in Bath, also includes national parenting workshops and wilderness experiences.

Ninety eight percent of Hyde School graduates are accepted to four-year colleges. To learn more about Hyde Schools, its summer leadership programs, and parenting and teen workshops, log on to Hyde.edu.

For more information about the "No-tech" Tuesdays experiment and other Hyde School events, contact Laura Michaels at lmichaels@hyde.edu, call 860-963-4763, or visit www.Hyde.edu.