Let’s keep it one hundred: the regular school system is straight-up failing a lot of our kids, leaving them stressed out and miserable. But while politicians in Parliament are busy trying to pass a blanket social media ban and lock up smartphones, a private hybrid school is showing them how it's actually done. London Park School (LPS) Hybrid, run by Dukes Education, just got named a finalist for the World’s Best School prize for overcoming adversity, and they’re up for a Tes Schools award for their pupil mental health work. And they did all of this by letting kids learn through screens.

Look at sixteen-year-old Ellie Ball. Two years ago, she was so stressed out and miserable she couldn't even make the seven-minute drive to her local state school. The system had her completely stuck. But fast forward to now, and she’s planning to take four A-levels and wants to study "astrolaw" at university. How did she turn it around? She did it through a screen, learning from home four days a week through the UK's only national hybrid school provider.

This hybrid setup is simple: the kids do remote learning from home four days a week, and then they travel to the London campus once a week to do their lessons in person. For Ellie, that means a whole hour on the train and tube, dealing with the morning rush hour. She doesn't even like the commute, but she does it with a smile because she actually loves her school now. When you give kids an environment that actually fits their life, they do the work, no excuses.

This school is making moves on a global level, competing against schools helping Ukrainian refugees in Poland, schools for migrant worker kids in the US, and an educational hub in the Amazon. While the state system is struggling to keep kids engaged, this hybrid school is getting worldwide respect. They’re even opening up a sixth form soon.

But instead of supporting these digital wins, the government is trying to push a heavy-handed social media access ban. It's the same old story: politicians who don't know anything about how the youth live trying to ban things instead of fixing the real problems. They think screens are the enemy, but for a lot of kids, those screens are their only way to get a real education.

Ellie didn't hold back, saying that screens aren't bad, it's just about how people use them. She pointed out that her old state school didn't use screens and she was miserable, but this hybrid school saved her education. Without it, she wouldn't even be in school right now, let alone grinding for four A-levels and a university spot.