SHREVEPORT, La. - Three years ago, parents in Greystones, Ireland, made a bold decision. Together with local schools, they agreed to hold off on giving their children smartphones until secondary school, what Americans call seventh grade, around age 13. The idea was simple. If parents stood together, kids would not feel left out, and families could delay some of the challenges that come with handing a child a connected device.

Now, the first group of kids raised under the pact is reaching secondary school. Teachers and chaplains in Greystones say the results are hard to ignore.

At Temple Carrig Secondary School, chaplain Josh Barrington says smartphones have changed student behavior in ways few adults saw coming. “The more they’re on the screen, the less they sleep,” he explained. “And th

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