Parents urge Barrington CUSD 220 board to keep Mandarin immersion single-grade; ask district to adopt screen‑time transparency

Several parents used the board’s public-comment period to press Barrington CUSD 220 for clearer communication and to oppose a proposed multi‑grade kindergarten/first‑grade model in the district’s immersion program.

David Lawer, a parent with children in the Mandarin immersion program, told the board he recognizes the district’s enrollment challenges but said combining kindergarten and first grade would “cause measurable documented harm” to 5‑year‑olds. Lawer cited a peer‑reviewed study he said is archived by the National Institutes of Health and said the research found that kindergarteners in mixed‑grade settings made smaller gains in math and literacy and exhibited weaker executive function compared with single‑grade classrooms. “This program was built on a promise… Families did not simply enroll. They signed commitments,” he said.

Kristen Bowman, a parent of three, urged the district to explore implementing a district‑wide screen‑time transparency tool (she cited platforms such as Lightspeed) so parents and staff can see how school‑issued devices are used and spot sites that bypass filters. Bowman described examples she said families discovered — including a site that purports to bypass filtering and hosts violent content — and asked that the district explore a monitoring and reporting solution before the 2026–27 school year and share anonymized usage trends periodically.

An unnamed parent who recently moved into the district’s Chinese immersion program told the board families lack clear communication about the rationale, teaching strategies and safeguards for any proposed multi‑grade approach and said uncertainty is already reducing enrollment interest.

Board and administration responses: Superintendent Dr. Wkelman and staff said the district’s social media and digital citizenship team is already working on related feedback and that an update for parents and enrolled families will be provided in the coming weeks. Administration emphasized that staff and the department of teaching and learning are reviewing options and that more information will be shared with families who have signed up for the program.

What this means: The comments do not record a vote on program structure; speakers asked the board for continued transparency and time to inform families before any final decisions about class structure are implemented.