If you’re an educator, I don’t need to tell you about the harmful effects of cellphones in the classroom on learning and mental health. Teachers are fighting this battle every day. Administrators tell me that teachers are begging them to implement policies for limiting or banning cellphones in school. The idea is gaining momentum across the country.
If you’re thinking about enacting a cell phone policy in your schools, you probably have many questions. Fortunately, we can learn from schools and districts that are leading the way. Since there are no standards yet for banning phones, districts are crafting new strategies to meet the growing needs of their communities.
Recently I spoke with two principals of schools/districts that have restricted student phones with very different policies. Over the next few weeks, I will share a series of 3 articles covering how they did it, the results they are seeing, and some tips to help you move forward with your own policy.
Here’s part 1: The story of White River Valley Supervisory Union.
First Branch Unified District is a two-campus district of pre-K to 8 schools in central Vermont serving about 350 students within White River Valley Supervisory Union. It’s not an affluent community and there’s no access to alternative education or out-of-district placement.
Teachers complained about the impact of social media and phones in the classroom, including distraction, power struggles, and HIB. Then an investigation of HIB in the district revealed that 75% of HIB cases involved cellphone use.
“When we asked students and parents, many said ‘We wish we didn’t have social media,’” explained Principal Janet Cash. “We also needed a way to take the responsibility for banning cellphones in school away from teachers. And we wanted a district-wide guideline to help us forge partnerships with families.”
Starting in September, First Branch Unified District implemented an “no phones during the day” guideline and expectation, where students cannot access their phone throughout the school day or during extracurricular activities. When students enter the building, they lock their phone in an assigned phone locker (under video surveillance) and retrieve it before leaving the building.
Emergency communication goes through the main office, and there are exceptions for medical reasons (such as diabetes monitoring that requires an app). The first offense penalty for a student being found with a phone is out-of-school suspension. The school has made it clear through their handbook, info nights, and several all-school letters about this shift. If a student is found with a phone, they go home.
The district chose centralized phone lockers purchased on Amazon instead of individual storage units kept in the classroom, because they cost less and were more secure. It also took the burden of enforcement away from teachers.
“We also budgeted for possible vandalism of the phone storage equipment,” said Janet, “but fortunately that has not occurred.”
District staff also created activities to take the place of phone use and help build social skills, such as games and hands-on projects at lunch and recess. The district also increased opportunities for students to spend time together by offering Supervisory-wide activity nights and dances. In addition, on Fridays there are electives and once every two weeks there is a community field trip.
The district opened a formal dialog with parents beginning before the school year started. During the days leading up to school, students could come in and find their locker assignment and go through the check-in process. The conversation continued through letters home, and at the school's open house (back to school night) they reported the data from the HIB study along with results of informal surveys. They also shared content from the U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory on Social Media and Youth Mental Health.
“One of the most important parts of putting this in place has been parent communication and building partnerships,” said Janet, “It helped us to develop the right guidelines and expectations and to manage the transition.”
Before the start of the school year, the district conducted a test drive with parents to take them through the process. Parents also signed agreements to ensure that everyone understood the guideline and expectation.
While the guideline and expectation has only been in effect for a few months, First Branch Unified District has seen a 10% reduction in administrative level referrals through SWIS (Student Information Wide System through PBIS). First Branch has also seen:
Janet shared an incident that illustrates the strong partnerships and parent buy-in that the district has earned:
“A student athlete’s phone fell out of their pocket when going to practice after school. Instead of suspension because this was after school, the student was benched for the next game. The parent understood and supported the school’s action because the framework had been established. The student now makes sure everyone knows the phone is locked away every day.”
In addition, the school has carefully handled all referrals with care, ensuring students are not shamed and the conversation is matter-of-fact.
Stay tuned for part 2 in our series: the story of Sage Alliance, a therapeutic high school in Rochelle Park, New Jersey.