MADISON, Wis. (WSAW) – The Wisconsin State Assembly approved a bill on Tuesday to ban cell phones from Wisconsin classrooms.
“Since smartphones and social media became prevalent in 2010, the mental health of young people across the world has rapidly declined. The impact on young girls has been particularly severe. Suicide among girls has nearly tripled during that time,” said Rep. Joel Kitchens, R-Sturgeon Bay, “Removing them during class time will certainly not solve all these problems. Technology is not going away, but we must teach young people to use it responsibly. Part of that is putting it aside when there is work to do.”
The bill’s sponsors said this legislation would limit distractions and also give schools a law to point to when enforcing their cellphone restrictions.
According to the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, 90% of schools already have a cellphone policy.
Critics of the bill said this policy should be controlled locally. Additionally, they argue the ban would be an “unfunded mandate,” requiring schools to come up with resources for enforcement on their own.
The bill now heads to the State Senate for further consideration.
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