Three out of every four New Providence classrooms visited by district leaders had no technology in use, early results from the district's screen-time initiative show.

Administrators told the Board of Education at its meeting last week that they visited 58 classrooms over 10 days as part of the district's "Balanced by Design" initiative, TAPinto New Providence reported. Of those 58 rooms, 44 were entirely screen-free. Technology was in use in the remaining 14. The reductions began this school year, making the visits an early look at the policy in practice.

The initiative, part of the district's 2025-2030 strategic plan, aims for what the district calls "responsible use of technology to enhance education," replacing device-heavy instruction with more print materials, handwriting and face-to-face interaction in all four district schools. New Providence High School, New Providence Middle School, Allen W. Roberts School and Salt Brook School together enroll about 2,298 students. The district's strategic planning page includes school-by-school infographics, a video presentation and parent Q&As for grades K-6 and 7-12.

The policy shift drew a range of reactions before it took effect. In May, New Providence High School teacher Carrell told the school's student newspaper, The Providential, "We need technology to do certain things but it's also good to go back to the traditional ways of pencil and paper." NPHS teacher Klein expressed similar support in the same article, calling it "a good decision overall to balance our approaches."

Students were more divided. Bianca Berti said the change could be "really beneficial, especially for the younger grades," but that some instruction should stay on the iPad because it "teaches the students independence and responsibility." Fellow student Grace Mundy said she opposed the change, arguing that technology helps students stay organized and is more efficient than managing paper notes.

Math readiness at 86.4% on new state test

A separate assessment report presented at the same meeting showed more than 90% of students are graduation-ready in English language arts on the New Jersey Graduation Proficiency Assessment. Math readiness was 86.4%. Spring 2026 was the first year the state gave the NJGPA in a new adaptive format, making results not directly comparable to prior years, NJ Spotlight News reported.

Under state rules, students who fall short of graduation readiness can retake the NJGPA in October, take alternative tests such as the SAT, ACT or PSAT, or pursue a portfolio option to demonstrate readiness.

The safety report delivered at the meeting showed no acts of violence or weapons offenses in district schools from January through June. New student representatives to the board were also introduced.

New Providence's next Board of Education meeting is scheduled for Thursday, Oct. 15.