Six weeks into a new district-wide policy that prohibits students from using their phones during the school day, Hamilton County educators said the change has had a positive impact, bolstering student engagement and prompting little pushback.
On Aug. 21, the Hamilton County Board of Education approved a ban on students using cell phones and other personal devices during the school day. Under the policy, students’ devices have to be turned off or on airplane mode from bell to bell and stored in an assigned locker, backpack, purse, vehicle or a location designated by school administrators.
In the lead-up to Oct. 1, the day the policy took effect, The Howard School’s principal reminded students daily about the coming changes, said Adriane Banks, a cosmetology teacher. Staff did research on cell phone addiction, she said, to help students understand that although they knew it would be difficult, it would help over time.
Teachers were worried about how things would go, Banks said.