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Parents and a neurologist urge Wilmette District 39 to curb iPad use in early grades
Summary
Multiple District 39 parents and a neurologist told the board the district should remove iPads from kindergarten and 1st grade, limit routine device exposure in lower elementary grades, lock down apps and browsers, and adopt clearer, grade-level EdTech policies to protect early brain development.
Dozens of parents and health professionals pressed the Wilmette Public Schools District 39 board on June 15 to sharply restrict routine iPad and screen use for the district’s youngest students, saying recent research links early, frequent screen exposure to harms in attention, language and academic outcomes.
Dr. Elizabeth Harris, a neurologist and District 39 parent, told the board the K–5 years are “when the brain is wiring itself,” and said MRI and EEG studies show associations between screen exposure and altered neural connectivity. “For each additional 1 hour of screen time, it’s linked to a 9 to 10 percent lower odds of meeting grade-level benchmarks in reading and math,” Harris said, and asked the board to “consider removing iPads from the kindergarten and 1st grade classrooms, and limiting screen time thereafter to designated tech learning labs.”
Parents who followed Harris echoed those concerns and urged concrete policy changes. Rachel Ginsberg, who said she previously worked at Google and is a District 39 parent, asked the district to “remove iPads from kindergarten and 1st grade. Minimize routine iPad use in the youngest grades. Delay regular device exposure until children are older,” and to be transparent with families about when and why screens are used.
Other speakers raised device-management and privacy details. Elena Rednick told the board the district’s app list includes “200 approved apps,” with 180 approved for kindergarten through 3rd grade, and asked how parents can be sure apps and privacy policies haven’t changed since approval. She also said Safari is available on kindergarten iPads and asked whether that can be locked down. Max Resnick urged the board to treat AI as an additional risk for young students, saying district guidance is “very vague” and arguing that AI use should be limited until junior high.
Board and administrative responses during the meeting indicated the district has already taken some steps: presenters noted that elementary iPads are being kept at school, YouTube was blocked on student devices and networks, core AI chat bots were blocked at the high school level, and additional categories were added to filtering tools to increase monitoring and visibility into student activity. Administrators pointed to ongoing work on a grade-by-grade EdTech policy and said they plan to use more targeted screening tools, scorecards and short-cycle measurements as part of broader instructional planning.
Parents asked for faster, clearer action and better communications. Joanna Spellman asked the board to put the burden of proof on technology proponents, saying parents “need a sheet” that explains what children will do with screens in the classroom. Several speakers repeated requests for locked-down configurations that would prevent students from swiping to unapproved apps or accessing browsers.
The board took no immediate, standalone policy vote on device rules during the meeting; instead the item remained part of ongoing technology and strategic-plan work that administrators said would be refined over the summer and reported to the board via scorecards and future agenda items.
