Piper Elementary reading specialist urges district to reconsider student devices, offers staff copies of Jonathan Haidt book

During the public hearing portion of the Berwyn South School District 100 meeting, longtime Piper Elementary reading specialist Kathy Paoli urged the board to consider changing district practice around student digital devices and offered to provide board members with copies of Jonathan Haidt's book The Anxious Generation. Paoli told the board she began studying the book last summer and that she had shared it with Superintendent Dr. Mary Havas and Piper staff. She said she had given a presentation to Piper staff and an overview to Piper parents and later participated in a book study on the text. "When you know better, you do better," Paoli said, citing the book's 65 pages of citations and saying the research convinced her that smartphones and similar devices have "literally rewired our children's brains." She noted other countries have taken steps to remove devices from classrooms and said Illinois will implement a statewide student-device ban in 2026; she added that District 100 began a ban this school year, according to her account. Paoli offered to gift each board member a copy of the book and said she would be willing to meet with district leaders to discuss the research. The remarks were public comment; the board did not vote or take action in response during the meeting.