Students face new cellphone restrictions in 17 US states as school year begins: How it happens and what changes to expect

As the new school year begins, students in 17 US states and the District of Columbia face fresh restrictions on cellphone use during school hours. These new rules aim to limit distractions in classrooms by banning or tightly regulating the use of phones during instructional time.Kentucky, one of the states implementing the new policies, has introduced a ban on cellphones during lessons. Jamel Bishop, a senior at Doss High School in Louisville, told the Associated Press that the change has allowed teachers to give more one-on-one attention to students who need it. “In previous years, students often weren’t paying attention and wasted class time by repeating questions,” he said.How cellphone restrictions are being implementedThe restrictions vary from state to state. Eighteen states and the District of Columbia have banned phones throughout the school day. Georgia and Florida enforce “bell-to-bell” bans only from kindergarten through eighth grade, while another seven states restrict phone use during class time but allow it between lessons and at lunch. Some states with local control traditions have only mandated that schools have cellphone policies, leaving the details to individual districts.Students have adjusted to new routines such as storing phones in magnetic pouches or lockers during lessons. At McNair High School in suburban Atlanta, where phone bans have been in place since last year, junior Audreanna Johnson said many students initially resisted giving up their phones. She told the Associated Press that phones were often used to gossip and share updates with friends in other classes. However, she added that “resentment is starting to ease down” as more students accept the rules and experience fewer distractions.Parental concerns and safety communicationDespite support for the restrictions, many parents express concerns about staying in touch with their children during the school day, especially regarding safety. Audrena Johnson, mother of Audreanna Johnson, emphasised the importance of her daughter having a phone for immediate communication in emergencies. She noted delays in official school messages about incidents, such as a fight involving a non-student on school property, which she only learned about when her daughter texted her during class, as reported by the Associated Press.A survey of 125 school districts in Georgia by Emory University researchers found that parental resistance remains a significant obstacle to regulating student use of phones and social media. Jason Allen, national director of partnerships for the National Parents Union, said that while parents generally support restrictions, they seek greater involvement in policymaking and improved communication, particularly about safety. He told the Associated Press, “We just changed the cellphone policy, but aren’t meeting the parents’ needs in regards to safety and really training teachers to work with students on social emotional development.”Research on effects of cellphone bans is ongoingResearch into the impact of cellphone restrictions on learning and mental health is still in early stages. Julie Gazmararian, a public health professor at Emory University studying phone bans in Marietta, Georgia, said teachers appreciate the reduction in classroom disruptions. She told the Associated Press that students are engaging more positively with each other and discipline referrals have noticeably decreased.However, some experts caution that social media use is linked with poor mental health but cannot yet be definitively blamed. Munmun De Choudhury, a professor at Georgia Tech, said, “We need to be able to quantify what types of social media use are causing harm, what types of social media use can be beneficial,” as quoted by the Associated Press.Some states resist mandatory bansWhile many states are adopting cellphone restrictions, some are resisting. Wyoming’s Senate rejected requiring districts to adopt cellphone policies, arguing that responsibility should lie with teachers and parents. In Michigan, a bill to ban phones during school hours was defeated after concerns about local control, although Governor Gretchen Whitmer continues to advocate for restrictions.With 35 states now having laws or rules limiting phone use in schools, the movement to regulate student cellphone access continues to grow across the US, reflecting bipartisan support amid ongoing debates about the effects on education and safety.TOI Education is on WhatsApp now. Follow us here.