“I print out all the handouts in my unit — around 5-10 pages double sided — so my students can take notes on paper.”
- English teacher Scott Cameron
“I use about 300 pages per student each year. They get about five packets — one for each unit — in place of a textbook. Tests and quizzes are also on paper.”
- History teacher Dr. Katie Dineen
Would going paperless save the school money, or would it cost more?
While extremely unlikely, going paperless would save the school a lot of money. To begin with, the $42,500 spent yearly on paper itself could be put toward other motives. On top of that, this would allow the district to save extra money previously spent on materials such as ink, printing equipment, and mailing fees.
The decline of paper use at PHS
Throughout recent years, Princeton Public Schools have been steadily implementing technology in the classroom. Largely jumpstarted with virtual learning during the COVID-19 pandemic, the district has continued its initiative to reinforce technology-supported learning. Teachers have largely switched many assignments from paper handouts to online modules through the Canvas platform.
The district has further carried out its one-to-one student device program with the distribution of new MacBooks this year at the high school. The continuation of digitization of learning materials has resulted in less need for paper in classrooms — but that trend may be coming to an end.
With AI becoming a further concern in classrooms, teachers may soon be switching back to traditional paper and pencil as an easy method to minimize AI use.
“I do think you’re going to see a shift to more pencil and paper [because] in May, when you sit for your AP tests, you will [most often] have to be able generate and write without the use of AI,” said history teacher David Roberts.
Paper use statistics
$42,500 spent on paper yearly throughout the district
35 pallets of paper
13,980 reams of paper
6,990,000 sheets of paper
Student perspectives
“I tend to lose my notes a lot, and when the school year is over, especially for subjects that carry over, like Chem or Calc, I look back on the notes a lot, so [a tablet is] more convenient for me.”
- Cynthia Shi ’26
“[A tablet] takes up less resources and I don’t have to lug around a bunch of papers. If I make a mistake, I can undo, move stuff around without having to erase ... if you want to save trees, use an iPad if you can.”
- Akshaj Sama ’26
“I prefer taking paper notes because I find that I retain information better when I’m writing it down ... and it’s helpful because I don’t need to buy an iPad ... it [also] shows that I’m not using any outside help.”
- Emma Dweck ’27