”Even now, my children are always looking at their smartphones”... Parents worried about the introduction of AI textbooks - South Korean media

As schools are set to introduce digital textbooks using artificial intelligence (AI) starting next year, parents are growing concerned about the risk of excessive use of digital devices and poor reading and comprehension.
It has been pointed out that the problem of a decline in literacy may become more serious. The Ministry of Education will gradually introduce digital textbooks from the new school term next year. In 2025, it will be introduced for third and fourth graders in elementary school, and for junior high school students.
The ministry plans to expand the use of digital textbooks to first graders and high school students in 2021, fifth and sixth graders in elementary school, second graders in middle school in 2026, and third graders in middle school in 2027.
However, to use digital textbooks, students must use digital devices such as tablet PCs or laptops instead of paper books.
Due to lack of digital education, students are spending more and more time on digital devices. On May 27th, a petition for national consent was submitted to the National Diet, calling for a postponement of the introduction of digital textbooks, due to concerns about this issue.
One of the petitioners, Mr. A, said, "Parents are experiencing family discord almost every day due to their children's excessive use of digital devices. They also said, "Digital devices are prohibited even at school, where children spend more than half of their day.
"Do we really have to use it?" he asked. The petition collected 56,505 signatures in one month and was delivered to the National Assembly's Committee on Education, which has jurisdiction over the matter, on the 27th of last month.
Ms. Choi (41), who lives in Gyeonggi Province and has a child in elementary school, said, "Even now, my child is obsessed with social media and games on tablet PCs, and I have to spend a lot of time on them.
"We are having a hard time getting them to limit it," he said. "As the introduction of digital textbooks gets fully underway and the amount of time students spend using digital devices increases, I am worried about whether we will be able to control it."
There are also concerns that the system could impair literacy and concentration, impairing learning abilities. Kim Shin-ae, who lives in Mapo-gu, Seoul, has an elementary school-aged child, said, "My child has dyslexia, so I don't think he'll be able to read it for free.
"They don't even try to read the text," he said, expressing concern that the introduction of digital textbooks will be detrimental to children with dyslexia.
They worry that this goes against the international trend to reduce students' use of digital devices.
Sweden, which was one of the first countries to adopt digital education, decided to expand the use of paper textbooks due to concerns about a decline in students' literacy.
The United States has increased the number of writing classes, while France and the Netherlands have banned the use of mobile phones in the classroom. A, a parent living in Daegu, said, "In other countries, the use of digital devices in the classroom is reduced.
"We are trying to make digital textbooks a supplementary tool for learning basic concepts, so I don't understand why Korea is trying to go against that," said an education ministry official.
"We plan to use this system," he said, adding, "We will address parents' concerns through information sessions in the second half of the year and tests in actual classes."