Parents and teachers said Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) students spend too much time on Chromebooks in class. They spoke at a listening session on Tuesday, Oct. 6, at Rockville Memorial Library.

More than a dozen people gathered for the event, organized by the Montgomery County Council of PTAs (MCCPTA) technology committee. Attendees described students gaming, browsing non-academic websites and accessing violent or sexual content on school-issued devices, Bethesda Magazine first reported.

The session comes as the Board of Education awaits results of a screen-time audit it ordered in July. That report, due no later than March 2027, will measure average daily and weekly screen time for elementary and middle school students across the district, including Bethesda-Chevy Chase cluster schools, and assess whether content filters work.

Betsy Tao, chair of the MCCPTA technology committee and an MCPS parent of two children, organized the event. Tao told attendees that district investments in literacy coaches, math instruction and new curriculum materials would fail unless the screen-time problem is addressed.

An MCCPTA survey released in January found that more than 70% of roughly 1,000 respondents, including caregivers, students, teachers and administrators, said Chromebook use in schools was excessive. More than 70% also raised concerns about how Chromebooks were being used.

Springbrook High School English teacher Elliot Berger said the district's new bell-to-bell cell phone ban has not solved the problem. Without a requirement to physically store phones, he said, "we have just gone backwards because students are using their phones. They're just not doing it as openly."

The district adopted its "No Cell, Bell to Bell" policy for the 2026-2027 school year, requiring all students to keep personal mobile devices put away from the first bell through dismissal. The policy anticipated the Joanne C. Benson MD Phone-Free Schools Act, a state law signed by Gov. Wes Moore in June that takes effect for the 2027-2028 school year.

Board member Julie Yang, who introduced the audit resolution, told attendees the review is underway. The board unanimously approved Resolution No. 329-26 on July 16, with Vice President Brenda Wolff absent. It directs MCPS to quantify screen time, assess content filters and recommend district-wide guidelines for age-appropriate device use in grades K through 8.

MCPS parent Ashley Bowers told Bethesda Magazine in June that her first-grade son used his school-issued Chromebook to search for horror video games during school hours. She said she found websites on topics including sex and mature video games accessible on his device.

The board expects the audit findings by March 2027.