It’s been nearly three months since Ohio law has prohibited K-12 students from using their cell phones during the school day.
School administrators and students have mixed feelings on how it’s going so far.
That’s according to Corinne Brion, an associate professor in the Department of Educational Administration at the University of Dayton.
She’s interviewed over a dozen school principals and students about the state’s cell phone policy to learn more about how the limits are impacting Ohio’s kids.
Ohio’s evolving school cell phone policy
Ohio started requiring public schools to adopt cell phone policies a couple years ago, but state law has gradually required those policies to become more strict.
Now, students aren’t just banned from using their phones during class time, they can’t access the technology during recess or lunch either.
Brion says many public Ohio schools implemented this policy starting back at the beginning of the current school year.
“So [cell phones are] either in the backpack, in the locker, in the pouch, in a bin that the teacher may have in the classroom,” Brion said, and they stay there for the entirety of the day.
The school principals she interviewed said it’s too early to notice a change in academic performance, but many commented on increased social interaction.
“They described more noise, more face-to-face interaction in places like recess, the hallway and the cafeteria,” she said.
Teachers also said students are able to focus on assignments for longer periods of time without taking a digital break. And many have noticed a decline in “digital drama,” meaning fewer online conflicts have migrated into the classroom.
Students’ perspectives
In addition to interviewing school administrators, Brion also surveyed and spoke with 18 Ohio high school students.
She said they were generally in favor of limiting cell phones in schools, but they cited several challenges the ban has created.
For example, because of multi-factor identification, some said they’re no longer able to work on college applications during the school day.
High schoolers with family responsibilities said it’s harder to get in touch with younger siblings to coordinate after school pickup and care.
Others talked about safety, and worried they wouldn’t be able to record incidents like bullying.
Another common argument Brion heard: the bell-to-bell ban doesn’t teach students responsibility. Students expressed concern that they won’t be prepared for college or the workforce, where bans on cell phones don’t exist.
“Honestly, from my conversations with them, there was a lot of wisdom and good ideas that came from that,” Brion said.
She says listening and responding to student concerns could help districts get more buy-in from them, which could make cell phone policies more effective in the long run.
Perhaps older students could be allowed to use cell phones during a study period, she suggested. That’s just one idea, but she hopes with time — and more research — schools can figure out the approach that’s best for everyone.
“Like anything, I think there’s maybe some lessons we’re going to learn in this coming year,” she said. “Talking to parents, students, principals and teachers will tell us, what should we do a little bit more of or little less of.”
