Studies show cell phones are a major distraction for primary and secondary education students. The Kentucky House unanimously passed a bill this week seeking to resolve the issue in public schools across the state.
Rep. Josh Bray, R-Mount Vernon, is the primary sponsor of the House Bill 208. He said on the House floor on Tuesday that the legislation would require the board of education for each public school district to adopt a policy on the possession and use of personal telecommunication devices by students during the school day.
Bray said studies show that limiting student cell phone use at school improves mental health and test scores.
“There’s been a lot of research done on cell phones with kids and the damages it causes to their mental health and to their ability to learn when they’re near,” Bray said. “There have been studies done that show in school districts that have implemented policies to prohibit their usage during instructional time, test scores have jumped up by 6% pretty immediately.”
The House adopted a floor amendment to HB 208 on Tuesday that added some clarifying language and stipulated that the prohibition is for instructional time, with a few exceptions, Bray said.
Teachers would be allowed to authorize cell phone use for an instructional purpose, and students would be allowed to use their phones during an emergency, he added.
The legislation would also direct the school districts to block access to social media websites on school computers and school internet networks.
Owensboro Public Schools Public Information Officer Jared Revlett said the district does have a policy regarding the use of cell phones. According to the student handbook, the devices may be used during passing/transition times; during the designated lunch period while in the cafeteria; and for instructional purposes only as directed by the classroom teacher.
“There are a number of things that can create distractions throughout the school day that take away from the educational process (phones can be one of them), but our teachers already do a great job of managing their classrooms and setting expectations for their students while learning is taking place,” Revlett said. “There are times where technology (computers, phones, etc.) have a place in the educational process and in a world where just about everything can be done in the palm of your hand, you’d be doing a disservice to the students by not incorporating real-world applications to prepare students for college and/or the workforce.”
Revlett said it’s also important to have exceptions to allow for the use of phones during an emergency.
“Thankfully, this bill wouldn’t prevent students from being able to have them in their possession, but based on our current district policies, it doesn’t appear this would change much for us,” he said.
Daviess County Public Information Officer Maddie Edwards said each DCPS school has their own cell phone policy, but there is a district technology accessibility use policy that can be found on the district website.
“We always try to eliminate any distractions/disruptions that lead to the instructional process in our buildings,” she said.
The Kentucky House of Representatives approved HB 208 on Tuesday by a 98-0 vote. It will now go before the Senate for consideration.
