After trying out a cell phone-free policy last spring, the City of New Haven is going full throttle with the plan and implementing it in all its high schools this year.
It’s a decision the district made after noticing the issues phones and social media brought about, which was backed by research.
“It facilitated, frankly, a lot of fights in our schools where someone would put something up on social media and it would trigger a lot of angry interactions with folks. Our teachers were being cell phone police officers in our schools, which is really not fair to be asking our teachers and parents to be doing that work,” New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker said.
The city invested $375,000 to buy Yondr pouches to keep the phones locked away throughout the school day in magnetic pouches.
Students are not allowed to access their phones until the end of the day unless there’s a pre-approved reason for them to have it.
All of it, school leaders say, is meant to create more social interactions, stronger focus during class time, and improve the overall well-being of the students.
And while many students were concerned about this at first, they know why it’s come to this.
“In the classroom, it means more focus, teachers don’t have to compete with notifications and students are more engaged in discussions. Lessons move forward with less interruptions and the atmospheres in classrooms have shifted for the better,” Genesis Guillen Samaniego, a 12th grader at Metropolitan Business Academy, said.
Teachers and students talked about how more students are interacting with each other, there are noisier classrooms, hallways and cafeterias. in a good way, and some are grateful to get back to the basics.
“I feel like this is a gift that I am giving our children. It is giving them the gift to disconnect, if even for just a few hours,” Dr. Madeline Negrón, the superintendent of New Haven Public Schools, said.
Students who may need to get in touch with someone can contact an adult or go to the main office to make a phone call. Parents can also get in touch with their children in the same manner.
