Digital Delusion Pt 2: Prioritising People Over Platforms

In a recent blog post, I shared a brief review of the book Digital Delusion by Dr Jared Cooney Horvath. The book and Dr Horvath have received significant attention over the past two months. This buzz reflects the shared concern among many teachers and parents about the cumulative negative impacts of excessive or unmanaged screen time on children, a topic Dr Horvath addresses with compelling data and evidence, much like Dr Jonathan Haidt's work in The Anxious Generation.

Many schools I've partnered with have initiated 2026 with a "digital reset," shifting their focus from platforms back to people. The core principle, or mantra, adopted from the Teacher Only Days I facilitated this year is "Routines, Relationships, and Rotations". This approach is already proving highly effective and well-received by students, teachers, and parents alike. While many of our students are enjoying enhanced interpersonal communication with peers and teachers as a result of this, it has also created time for teachers to engage with me to learn more about using AI tools to create more personalised and engaging resources for their students. This, in turn, empowers teachers to scaffold and differentiate content to meet the diverse needs of their students.

Here’s some recent feedback from Nicole Thornton (DP) at Southbridge Primary School.

“The things that I have been taught and shown by Martin are amazing. There is just so much knowledge to be shared, and finding ways to work smarter. I love the station rotation idea that ensures engagement of all learners. The pace at which AI is moving is crazy, and you have to move with this and be able to use it as a tool.”

The healthy shifts we are now seeing in classrooms are also being mirrored in communities, thanks to the work of Smartphone Free Childhood NZ. This is an amazing group of parents who are part of a worldwide movement to protect childhood from predatory companies, people and habits. Feel free to share the site with your parent community so that as many whanau as possible can sign up to the Parent Pact.

And here’s a response from Dr Jared about this work:

“New Zealand was one of the first countries in the world to connect nearly every school to high-speed internet and to surpass a 1:1 computer-to-student ratio (meaning there are now more screens in schools than students).

Perhaps for this reason, it's unsurprising that educational outcomes have been slowly declining over the last two decades. Combine this with the country's rising levels of screentime, online bullying, and youth suicide, and it's clear that something needs to shift.

That's why I'm incredibly encouraged by the thoughtful work happening in New Zealand schools with Martin Hughes and across local communities through Smartphone Free Childhood NZ.

Parents, teachers, and leaders are remembering that the classroom is a sacred space - and working to restore schools as places of deep learning and genuine human connection rather than digital proliferation.

I look forward to following this important work and supporting in any way I can.”