Carroll ISD will ban personal laptops and devices for students in grades 5-8 starting in August 2027. The board of trustees voted Monday, Sept. 14, to end the Southlake district's Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) program for those grades.

The board also banned privacy screens on student devices in grades 5-8, effective immediately. Privacy screens limit side-angle visibility, making it harder for teachers to monitor what students are doing on their computers, according to Community Impact.

The changes build on the Dragons Unplugged initiative the board approved Aug. 17, which capped screen time across the district.

Monday's vote targets middle-grade students specifically: once the BYOD ban takes effect, fifth through eighth graders will use only district-provided devices when technology is needed for instruction, according to the board agenda.

Carroll ISD previously allowed students in grades 5-12 to use personal devices like laptops during the school day. The board's action covers grades 5-8; the agenda does not address BYOD rules for grades 9-12.

Gina Peddy, the district's executive director of curriculum and instruction, called the changes "implementation clarifiers" at the Sept. 14 meeting.

"Our goal has not changed. We want to reduce unnecessary technology use while still making sure students have access to technology when it is really needed for learning," Peddy said.

The agenda item was recommended by Superintendent Jeremy Glenn.

Dragon Den study periods get device exception

One practical shift for families: students in the district's Dragon Den study periods can now use district-approved devices to access digital textbooks and complete assignments that require online materials.

Parents must opt in, and the district said opt-in forms were already being sent out as of Monday's meeting.

Previously, students in Dragon Den could not work on assignments requiring digital materials during the study period and had to finish them as homework instead. Peddy said that outcome was unintended.

The district also plans to move away from online vocabulary and grammar programs for the 2027-28 school year, switching to paper-based materials. The board agenda listed the budgetary impact of all three policy changes as none.

In an Aug. 14 Dragon Media report on the earlier Dragons Unplugged rollout, AP English teacher Melissa McCaleb described early results at the high school level: "I'm already seeing more engagement … There's more talking, there's more collaboration, there's more empathy, there's more sympathy."

The district plans to have the BYOD ban and paper-based curriculum shift in place by the start of the 2027-28 school year.