Students returning to class in Madison Public Schools (MPS) this fall are coming back to slightly more “restrictive” rules surrounding cell phones and their use during school hours.

Members of Madison Youth Unplugged attended the Board of Education (BOE) meeting on Aug. 20 to discuss the issue. According to Julia Phillips, the organization started as a group of moms in Madison looking to read and discuss the book The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt, which discusses the prominent use of cellphones and other devices and the author’s belief it has caused a “rewiring” of childhood and a rise in mental illness. The book itself has been both debated and criticized in the short time since its March 204 release, with Haidt making references to statistics showing increases in ADHD diagnosis and emergency room visits for self-harm in recent years.

Phillips and Madison Youth Unplugged have taken up four tenants discussed in the book to create a better space for their kids, including creating more active play spaces for younger kids, waiting until after a child passes eighth grade before giving them access to a smartphone, holding off on giving access to social media until the age of 16, and eliminating the use of smartphones in school.

“This is the cigarettes of this generation,” Phillips said.

State and nationwide, school officials have begun taking action to curb social media and device usage among students. Earlier this year, Connecticut took action and passed laws that restrict children’s access to social media and added parental consent settings so that parents can limit the amount of social media their kids can have access to. Madison Youth Unplugged’s Lauren Carpenter noted that some teachers in other states are establishing a “phone jail” consisting of pouches where students can place their phones until a teacher allows them to have them back.

Superintendent of MPS Dr. Craig Cooke said the district’s schools have taken steps to limit phone usage.  At Daniel Hand High School, students are allowed to keep their phones on their person during the school day but are not allowed to use them during class instruction.

Polson Middle School is   “taking a more restrictive stance” on its phone policy, Cooke said. Sixth-grade students are required to leave their phones in their locker throughout the day, whereas seventh- and eighth-graders may leave devices in their locker or place them in a caddy in the classroom. Phones may be retrieved after class.

According to Cooke, the changes have been welcomed by faculty and students. He added that the BOE will wait until the end of the school year to make additional decisions on device restrictions.