NEWSLETTER | EDITION 22
Is Your Child Learning - or Is the Screen Doing It?
Screens, AI and what students still need to be able to do themselves
Technology can make schoolwork faster, neater and more impressive. But the finished product can improve even when the student has done less thinking.
SEARCH
finds the information.
AI
can generate the response.
SOFTWARE
can fix the wording.
CALCULATOR
can produce the answer.
THE QUESTION FOR 2027
The issue is not whether students should use technology. It is whether the tool is helping them understand, practise and think. The tool cannot simply completing the difficult part for them.
NEWSLETTER | EDITION 22 · Is Your Child Learning - or Is the Screen Doing It?
WHY ARE SCHOOLS USING LESS SCREEN TIME?
Victoria is moving toward more deliberate device use from 2027.
F-2
MINIMAL DEVICE USE
Digital devices should be used only where there is a clear curriculum purpose.
90 MIN
YEARS 3-6
The daily maximum applies to student use of digital devices for learning at school.
DEVICE-FREE
SECONDARY
Schools are expected to plan learning time where devices are not required.
THIS IS NOT A BAN ON TECHNOLOGY
The Department still expects schools to build digital skills. The shift is away from using a device simply because one is available, and toward choosing it when it improves the learning.
WHY IT MATTERS
Some skills need direct practice without instant searching, autocorrect, calculator support or AI. Students still need to read, recall, write, calculate and reason independently.
Policy basis: Victorian Department of Education, Digital Learning policy, current for 2027 implementation.
NEWSLETTER | EDITION 22 · Is Your Child Learning - or Is the Screen Doing It?
"I STUDIED FOR TWO HOURS." WHAT DID THE BRAIN ACTUALLY DO?
Screen time alone tells us very little about the quality of study.
PASSIVE / EASY TO OUTSOURCE
Reread slides
Copy notes
Watch a worked solution
Search immediately
Ask AI before attempting
ACTIVE / HARD TO FAKE
Recall without notes
Solve from a blank page
Explain why it works
Attempt before checking
Correct and reattempt errors
THE POINT
A laptop can support excellent learning. The concern is when the screen makes it too easy to avoid retrieval, problem solving and independent explanation - the very skills students later need in tests, SACs and exams.
NEWSLETTER | EDITION 22 · Is Your Child Learning - or Is the Screen Doing It?
AI: WHEN DOES HELP BECOME REPLACEMENT?
The same AI tool can support learning or quietly remove it.
AI SUPPORTS THE THINKING
"Quiz me on this topic." "Explain this another way." "I attempted this - where did my reasoning go wrong?".
The student still has to understand, decide and respond.
AI STARTS DOING THE THINKING
"Give me the arguments." "Rewrite this paragraph." "Give me a full-mark response."
The output may improve, but it becomes harder to tell what the student can do independently.
AI REPLACES THE STUDENT
"Write my assignment." "Answer my homework." "Give me something to memorise and repeat."
The work may look strong while the student practises very little of the assessed skill.
A USEFUL TEST
After using AI, could the student still explain and reproduce the thinking themselves?
NEWSLETTER | EDITION 22 · Is Your Child Learning - or Is the Screen Doing It?
WHAT DOES VCAA ACTUALLY SAY ABOUT AI?
The key issue is authenticity: assessed work must represent the student's own learning.
STUDYING AND PRACTICE
AI can be used as a learning tool when school and teacher expectations allow it. Students should still check accuracy and avoid relying on generated answers as a substitute for practice.
SCHOOL-BASED ASSESSMENT
VCAA requires schools to authenticate student work. Unattributed or disallowed use of generative AI may be treated as a breach of academic integrity. The exact rules can depend on the task and the school's instructions.
VCE EXTERNAL EXAMINATIONS
Generative-AI functions are not permitted. Where a computer or assistive technology is approved, generative-AI and predictive-text functions must be disabled.
STUDENT RULE
Before using AI for assessed work: know what is allowed, keep the process transparent, and be able to explain everything you submit.
VCAA basis: VCE Administrative Handbook - scored assessment; Special Examination Arrangements guidance.
NEWSLETTER | EDITION 22 · Is Your Child Learning - or Is the Screen Doing It?
"THE AI DETECTOR SAYS 87% AI."
A detector result by itself does not prove that a student used AI.
87% AI?
Victorian Department guidance warns that AI-detection tools can produce false positives and false negatives. Schools should not rely on a percentage alone.
AUTHENTICATION IS ABOUT EVIDENCE
The stronger question is not "What percentage did the detector give?", but "Can the student demonstrate that this work genuinely reflects their own learning?"
Therefore, the school has the rights to ask students to provide the followings.
DRAFTS
How did the work develop?
PREVIOUS WORK
Does it match the student's normal performance?
CONVERSATION
Can the student explain the ideas and choices?
PROCESS
Can they reproduce or justify the reasoning?
NEWSLETTER | EDITION 22 · Is Your Child Learning - or Is the Screen Doing It?
A SIMPLE RULE FOR STUDENTS
Use technology after thinking.
1. ATTEMPT
Try the task before searching for an answer.
2. THINK
Identify what you know, what you need and where you are stuck.
3. USE THE TOOL
Use AI, search, CAS or another tool for a clear purpose.
4. CHECK
Verify the output. AI and online solutions can be wrong.
5. EXPLAIN
Make sure you could reproduce the reasoning without the tool.
FOR ASSESSED WORK
Add one more question: "Is this use of AI actually allowed for this task?" If unsure, ask the teacher before using it.
NEWSLETTER | EDITION 22 · Is Your Child Learning - or Is the Screen Doing It?
THE FUTURE IS NOT SCREEN-FREE
It is about better judgement, stronger independence and purposeful technology use.
1. NOT EVERY TASK NEEDS A DEVICE
Some learning is stronger when students work from memory, discuss, write or solve without instant digital support.
2. AI CAN BE A POWERFUL LEARNING TOOL
Use it to explain, question and give feedback - not to manufacture work the student cannot reproduce.
3. VCE STILL REQUIRES INDEPENDENCE
Students must be able to authenticate assessed work and perform without generative AI in external examinations.
4. PARENTS SHOULD ASK ABOUT LEARNING
Instead of only asking how long a child studied, ask what they can now explain, solve or do independently.
THE REAL DIGITAL SKILL
Knowing when technology improves learning - and knowing when it is time to put it away.