Chris Roberts at Large

04/04/2026

The Dallas ISD bond election is weeks away. Proposition B - $145 million for student devices - sounds like progress.

But here's what the research actually shows:
📚 A 2023 University of Valencia study: students reading on paper have comprehension 6 to 8 times greater than those reading on screens
📊 The 2022 global PISA survey: 65% of students say devices distract them during math lessons
🧠 Neuroscience confirms handwriting activates far more of the brain than typing - and is a clinical tool used in dyslexia therapy
🇸🇪 Sweden, once a world leader in classroom tech, spent $60M to reverse course and go back to books - backed by scientists at the Karolinska Institute
🇺🇸 U.S. math scores on PISA are at historic lows - below the international average.

More screens didn't build better readers. More screens didn't build better math students. And $145 million won't either.

Support Dallas students. Vote NO on Prop B. Share this if you agree. 🗳️

04/04/2026

Dallas ISD will never catch up, unless...

Sweden was once considered a global leader in classroom technology. Tablets in preschool. Screens everywhere. Sound familiar?

Then the data came in. Sweden's international reading scores dropped. Their scores on the PIRLS reading assessment fell. Their PISA math and reading scores declined - and their own Ministry of Education pointed to screen-heavy instruction as a key factor.

So in 2023, Sweden reversed course - spending over $60 million to put printed textbooks back in students' hands. By 2026, every Swedish student will have a physical book for every subject. The Karolinska Institute, one of Europe's most respected research universities, issued a formal statement: digital tools in classrooms "impair rather than enhance student learning."

The Netherlands, France, Italy, Finland, and Ireland are all having the same conversation.

Dallas ISD hasn't started it yet. Instead, they're asking us to fund the experiment Sweden just admitted was a mistake.
Vote NO on Proposition B. 📚

04/04/2026

We are not doing our math students any favors with block scheduling.

We talk a lot about what we teach. We don't talk nearly enough about how often.

Math - especially foundational and remedial math - requires daily reinforcement. It's not a subject you can absorb in two long sessions a week. Skills build on each other, and gaps compound fast.

Block scheduling, where students may only see a subject two or three times a week, is particularly damaging for students who are already behind. Miss one day and you've potentially gone four or five days without touching the material. At that point, you're not learning math - you're re-learning it every session from scratch.

The 2022 PISA results confirmed that U.S. math scores are at some of the lowest levels ever recorded - below the international average. This isn't just a curriculum problem. It's a structure problem.

Reserve block scheduling for advanced students who've already built strong foundations. For students who need it most, DAILY instruction isn't optional - it's the whole game.

04/04/2026

Why vote against your better judgement?

Here's something that should stop every Dallas ISD parent in their tracks: handwriting is an actual clinical tool used in dyslexia therapy - and we're being asked to spend $145 million to replace it with keyboards.

The British Dyslexia Association specifically recommends cursive writing to help students distinguish commonly reversed letters like b, d, p, and q - a hallmark struggle for dyslexic learners. Because hands develop a physical, muscle memory of each letter, the brain retains them in a way typing simply cannot replicate.

Neuroscience backs this up. Research published in peer-reviewed journals confirms that handwriting activates a significantly broader network of brain regions than typing - combining motor, sensory, visual, and cognitive processing all at once. Typing engages far fewer neural circuits by comparison.

And it's not just for students with dyslexia. College students who took notes by hand consistently outperformed those who typed - because writing by hand forces the brain to process and summarize, rather than just transcribe.

A pencil and a piece of paper. One of the most powerful learning tools ever invented - and it's practically free.

04/04/2026

Why do we want to distract our students from learning?

Here's a fact straight from the 2022 PISA global education survey - the same test that ranks countries worldwide: 65% of students say they are distracted by digital devices during math lessons.

And that's in a controlled school setting. Research on digital reading found that 67% of readers don't last 10 minutes before they're messaging or browsing instead of reading - even in study conditions.

Yes, schools use content filters. And yes, students share logins and find workarounds within minutes. Any teacher who's spent time in a classroom post-pandemic knows this isn't speculation - it's daily reality.

Dallas ISD wants $145 million to put more of this in front of every student.

Distraction isn't a bug in the device rollout. It's a feature of the device itself. Vote NO on Prop B. ❌

04/04/2026

Dallas ISD wants $145 million of your tax dollars for student devices in the upcoming bond election. Before you vote yes, consider what the research actually says.

A 2023 study by researchers at the University of Valencia analyzed dozens of studies and found that students reading on paper had comprehension 6 to 8 times greater than students reading the same material on screens for the same amount of time. That's not a rounding error - that's a canyon.

This isn't one outlier study. A 2018 meta-analysis reviewed 54 studies involving over 171,000 readers and reached the same conclusion. A 2024 meta-analysis of 49 more studies confirmed it again. Researchers now call it the "screen inferiority effect."
Meanwhile, Sweden - once considered a global leader in classroom technology - watched its international reading scores drop and said: enough. In 2023, the Swedish government reversed course, investing over $60 million specifically to put printed textbooks back in students' hands. Sweden's own Karolinska Institute, one of Europe's most respected research universities, stated plainly that digital tools in classrooms "impair rather than enhance student learning."

And where does the U.S. rank? On the most recent global PISA assessment, American 15-year-olds scored below the international average in math - at some of the lowest levels ever recorded. Our rankings look better only because other countries fell harder.

More screens didn't fix it for Sweden. More screens won't fix it for Dallas.

Vote NO on Proposition B. 📚

25/01/2026

Instantly my favorite tuba chart:
https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1C6L5pxMk2/

03/01/2026

“We set out to make music, soul music. To us, soul music’s not about being black or white, or the instruments you play, or whether you use a drum machine or not. It’s a decision to reveal or conceal.”
— Bono, GRAMMY Awards, 1988

PrAIse - Volume 1 (gospel FUNK) now streaming everywhere... Link in bio
and https://chrisrobertsatlarge.com/prAIse/volume-1

02/01/2026

Listen anywhere you stream music:
"PrAIse - Volume 1"
Gospel + Funk = your new favorite album 😀

Link in bio or ⬇
https://chrisrobertsatlarge.com/prAIse/volume-1

01/01/2026

Tomorrow, tomorrow....
The gospel funk album you didn't know you NEEDED
"PrAIse - Volume 1" ⛪ + 🎧= 🔥

Link in bio or ⬇
https://chrisrobertsatlarge.com/prAIse/volume-1

03/06/2024

Happy to be able to sponsor 2 band campers this year from Hope, Arkansas. 100% of the proceeds from the book How to Make First Chair make it possible! https://a.co/d/2ajFyNB

27/05/2024