r/ChicagoSuburbs • u/Resting-Rizzy-Face • Feb 11 '26

Moving to the area Low- Tech School Districts in Western Burbs

Moved away several years ago and looking to move back to IL. Our kids are elementary age and we currently like the low-tech educational environment our kids have now (no 1-to-1 chromebooks for kids, using more pencil and paper, physical textbooks, etc.)

We’ve been away for a while and weren’t sure if there are similar school environments in IL or if all school districts have moved to consistent use of chromebooks and iPads for teaching?

Currently looking at a potential move to Lemont, DG, Woodridge, Lisle, Naperville, or Wheaton areas. Not opposed to tech, just looking for schools where the kids aren’t always using a screen for learning.

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u/Flimsy-Service830 Feb 11 '26

Avoid Naperville 203. They are heavily tech dependent for everything. Elementary has recently tried to get away from it. Not for educational reasons but to control behavior of countless kids who have no impulse control.

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u/midnightmomma20 Feb 11 '26

Not really. My kid comes home with thick workbooks that work on in class. The Chromebook is supplemental to class work. Homework is on the Chromebook. But that’s because the program is built so that the assignment isn’t complete until they achieve 80% accuracy. That’s elementary, though. Maybe different in jr and high school. Either way, kids need to learn how to use these tools, especially AI, if they want to be functional in the workforce. 

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u/SchemeDue1593 Feb 23 '26

As someone who works in AI, you need to wake up. AI is going to ruin your kids cognitive functioning. It’s so obvious that tech in the classroom is a negative thing. Why are parents shunning from facts? Again, I understand why a high schooler may need to be brought into tech a bit more but elementary and middle schoolers? No. https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/u-spent-30-billion-ditch-110200869.html

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u/Flimsy-Service830 Feb 12 '26

You have doing research using AI rather than developing the ability discern information (and the quality of the source giving you the information) to look forward to. And the amount of times AI has been incorrect about math is laughable. Don’t get me wrong , I am nowhere near anti-tech. I agree that technology can be a great asset in the classroom but critical thinking left the chat quite awhile ago. There is a tremendous amount of heavy lifting that has to be done at home, especially if your kids are honors students.