Sweden stops digitalization – and Switzerland?

Sweden wants to significantly reduce the use of digital media in schools. Politicians and teachers explain how they assess the situation in Switzerland.

Tablets in schools: Sweden wants to move away from them more and more. This is also an exciting topic in Switzerland. – keystone

The most important thing in brief

Pen and paper should become more important again in Swedish schools.
Swiss politicians are now advocating the targeted use of digital means.
The teachers’ association also emphasizes: A balanced model is important.

Digital tools are an indispensable part of today’s world. Cell phones, laptops and tablets are used almost everywhere. It’s no different in many schools either.

But Sweden is now rowing back. A new curriculum is due to come into force next year. The Scandinavian country wants to get students back to pen and paper.

Cell phones and the like can be good tools in schools. However, there are also risks such as the risk of distraction. In Sweden, people now want to go back to “real life”. Pen and paper should be used again instead of electronic devices. In Switzerland, too, digitalization in schools is not only perceived positively.

Reason: It has been shown that digitalization also has negative effects, the reason is the brake in the north. For example, the risk of distractions increases for students. Therefore, there is now a kind of digitalization stop.

One thing is clear: digitalization in schools is also an important and quite controversial topic in Switzerland.

Just a few days ago, the highest education director, Silvia Steiner, caused a stir. She said: “Personally, I would be in favor of a cell phone ban. I don’t see why a cell phone is needed in class or on the playground.”

Digitalization goes less far in Switzerland than in Sweden

However, the initial situation in the Alpine country is somewhat different than that in the Arctic Circle. Several education directorates explained to Nau.ch that the current situation in this country is not comparable to that in Sweden.

Andreas Walter from the Solothurn elementary school office says, for example: “Teaching in the canton of Solothurn is – unlike in Sweden – analogue.” Digital media would only be used if they represented added value. Their use is recommended from the 3rd grade onwards – the devices are part of the school material.

Instead of iPad & computers: Should schools rely more on pen and paper again?

It sounds similar in the canton of Aargau. Simone Strub Larcher from the Department of Education, Culture and Sport there says: “Unlike in Scandinavian countries, the schools in the canton of Aargau are not completely digitalized. In our case, reading, writing and arithmetic are still largely acquired in an analogue way.”

In Bern, too, people are constantly reflecting on whether and how digital aids can be used sensibly in teaching. As Christoph Schelhammer explains, purchasing the devices in elementary schools is the responsibility of the communities. At Sec II level, young people generally procure the material themselves.

It is also important to mention that ultimately the individual schools decide how digitalization takes place in detail.

Politicians and teachers comment to Nau.ch and explain to what extent the use of the technologies makes sense from their point of view.

Center National Councilor Durrer: Purely digital lessons are not well received

Nidwalden Mitte National Councilor Regina Durrer, herself a vocational school teacher, thinks it is important to differentiate between age groups.

“I would be very cautious about using digital media in the first four years of primary school,” the politician told Nau.ch. She would even stop using tablets, cell phones, etc. until the second grade.

Center National Councilor Regina Durrer. – keystone

From the fifth grade onwards, a laptop can be used for specific teaching content. From high school onwards, according to Durrer, who is a member of the National Council’s Education Commission, “a good mix” is needed.

Durrer goes on to say: “I support the fact that cell phones normally have no place in class. It should also be ensured that all teaching materials are also available on paper if requested.” At the vocational school, cell phones are increasingly being collected at the beginning of a lesson.

Both teachers and learners view purely digital teaching critically, says Durrer. «Many learners say that they can work better with paper documents. And teachers can see more quickly whether students are working if they can’t “hide” behind their screens.”

SP National Councilor Aebischer: Use devices “only in a very targeted manner”.

According to Matthias Aebischer, there are also challenges with digital media in schools in Switzerland. «I noticed that some schools barely monitor the use of electronic devices. “That’s not good and we have to change,” he says.

SP National Councilor Matthias Aebischer. – keystone

The SP National Council and trained teachers find the term “digitalization stop” a bit dramatic. However, he says: “Of course I very much welcome the fact that the electronic devices are only used in a very targeted manner at school.”

The teacher always has to consider whether an assignment is effective. For Aebischer, also a member of the National Council Education Commission, it is clear: “Electronic devices as a way to pass the time have no place in the classroom.”

Teachers’ Association: Digitalization stop “doesn’t make sense”

Foregoing the new aids entirely is out of the question for the Swiss Teachers Association LCH. Beat A. Schwendimann, Head of Pedagogy, tells Nau.ch: “A general stop to digitalization, as is being discussed in Sweden, does not make sense for Swiss schools.”

Instead, digital media should be used in lessons in a “balanced and reflective manner”. “Both approaches – analog and digital – have their place and should complement each other,” says Schwendimann. If you use digital tools correctly, they can “effectively support” learning.

Beat A. Schwendimann from the Swiss Teachers Association. – zVg

The example of Sweden could also show that certain corrections are necessary in digitalization. Schwendimann says: “In some countries, the use of digital media may have been pushed too hard.”

Clear rules for the use of electronic devices are important. Especially when these guidelines are missing, the risk of distractions is particularly high, says Schwendimann.

The conclusion: Switzerland was a little more cautious than Sweden when it came to digitization in schools. That’s why major corrective measures such as a stop to digitalization are probably not needed now. Nevertheless – everyone largely agrees – you have to constantly think about when it makes sense to use it.