Should Cellphones be Allowed in Classrooms?

Do you think phones should be aloud in school?

There are good and bad ways phones could affect how a classroom runs.

Some states have already banned phones in school. The states Ohio, Indiana, Oklahoma and Florida have already placed cellphone bans, and other states are considering doing the same.

students' access to their devices during the school day stands to be dramatically curtailed. A growing wave of education leaders and policymakers are adopting new cellphone policies, with the debate swinging decidedly in favor of tighter restrictions. Limiting access, they argue, will benefit students' mental health and learning.

As the debate over cellphones in schools continues, Education Week is tracking state-level legislation and policies that aim to limit students' access to the devices during the school day.

South Carolina Statewide restriction The South Carolina legislature included a condition in its 2024-25 budget that requires districts to implement a cellphone policy to receive state aid. The budget directs the State Board of Education to adopt a model policy that "prohibits access to personal electronic communication devices by students during the school day" for districts to implement by January 2025. At the very least, districts must require students to keep their phones and connected devices, such as smartwatches, turned off and in their backpacks or lockers during the school day, according to the model policy the state board passed in September. The model policy has exceptions for students whose IEPs or 504 plans require access to a personal device. Districts can decide whether to enact stricter rules, as well as the consequences for violating them. Signed: 7/3/2024 Effective date: 1/1/2025