At the February 26 Board of Education meeting, High School Principal Tim Brunson delivered an update on the school’s new cell phone policy, supporting his claims with compelling data and anecdotes. The policy’s development was spurred by New York Governor Hochul’s and state legislators’ consideration of significant statewide restrictions on student cell phone use during school hours, including a potential “bell-to-bell” ban prohibiting their use entirely. While cell phone use is already completely banned in BH-BL’s elementary and middle schools, the new high school policy takes a more nuanced approach, stopping short of a complete prohibition.
“It took us a year to properly develop the process for implementation,” Brunson explained, emphasizing the collaborative effort between administrators and teachers. “The ‘BH-BL tradition’ of shared decision-making resulted in 100 percent support for the policy when it was rolled out in August,” he adds.
The policy is focused on removing the distraction of cell phones from the academic platform, which means no phone use in any classes, academic and non-academic, including study halls. There is, however, a compromise built into the policy. While students can’t use their phones during class time, they have unrestricted access for more than 125 minutes each day, including hallway passage time between classes, lunch, and activity periods.
“That 125 minutes a day gives students time to check their phone notifications, connect with peers not in their classes or, perhaps as an example, send a quick text to their parents if their athletic practice or club meeting times changed,” said Brunson.
This compromise also encourages students to see the significant role that responsible cell phone usage plays in their life now and into the future at college and in the workforce. “We have to be honest with ourselves that cell phones are a part of everyday life and it’s better to teach–and show–kids appropriate cell phone use management than it is to simply ban phones,’ adds Assistant Superintendent Dr. David Collins.
High School senior Sawyer Brannigan concurs: “In general, most of us feel the time given for phone use during the school day is a perfect balance that allows us to experience the appropriate ratio of screen time vs ‘real-world’ time. I notice, too, that most of my classmates and I have been engaging in more thoughtful discussions without the distractions of our phones. We have no choice but to step out of our comfort zone and learn from one another. On a personal level, I’ve gained more than I expected out of the cell phone policy. I have found that I am not as attached to my phone anymore and, even though it may have been startling for me to recognize, it was an important realization that not just myself but many other students have discovered about their phone habits.”
High School sophomore Violet Schultz adds: “Personally, my screen time average has dropped as a result of not being on my phone in class, and my habits have also changed my screen time at home. You’d think I would be increasing my screen time at home as a result of not using my phone for most of the school day, but it actually has caused me to be less addicted to my phone. Since last year, my screen time has been cut in half. And, because I’m not constantly going to my phone for short bursts of dopamine throughout the day, I find myself not wanting to be on my phone at home nor use social media as much.”
How the policy is implemented
In every high school classroom, a cell phone holder (see photos) was hung on a
wall at the front of the room. The holders have individual pockets/slots that teachers have either numbered or lettered and assigned to students. At the beginning of each class, the students put their own cell phone in their designated pocket. Then they retrieve their phones after class is over and they’re leaving the classroom.
“This system avoids any concerns about staff handling student property,” adds Brunson.
Positive impact of new cell phone policy
Additionally, Brunson described some of the positive impacts of the policy. For instance, he and others have noticed that the hallways are quieter, classes are more lively, and students are more engaged. Some students, he shared, had even reported a decrease in their daily phone usage. “They’ve gotten parts of their life back,” he remarked.
“The new cell phone policy has been not just a help for students but teachers as well,” adds Brannigan. “I know personally from speaking with various teachers that they love being able to teach without the worry that students aren’t focusing due to whatever students would normally be doing while sneaking onto their phones.”
Schultz adds: “I, too, have seen a noticeable improvement in both the learning environment of my classes and the social behavior of my peers. Without the distraction of having the option to be on your phone during down time, like last year, students are interacting with one another more and focusing on work that could be done. I can also confidently say that the student body much prefers the cell phone wall pouches in class to the possible alternative of Yondr pouches currently being used at other schools. I feel the pouches can potentially become unsafe in an emergency. But, because we can see where our phones are when in class, I don’t worry about trying to get access to my phone if something were to happen.”
Brunson also shared some compelling data that compared bathroom sign-out logs from the previous year to the current year, thus revealing a drastic decrease. “At this point in the school year, we have 19,847 bathroom sign-outs, compared to 25,443 bathroom sign outs at the same time last year,” said Brunson. He attributed this to students no longer taking extended bathroom breaks to socialize on their phones. “Now, without their phones, they actually go directly to the bathroom when they sign out and they’re back to class in a shorter amount of time.”
Disciplinary referrals for cell phone violations have also plummeted from 48 last year to only 10 this year. Brunson noted that those referrals were not for using phones in class, but rather for students who didn’t put their phones in the holders—forgetfulness rather than defiance.
He acknowledged that there were a few parents early on who expressed concern about staff handling student phones, access in the case of an emergency, and the possibility of increased student anxiety. The policy, however, addresses these concerns by having students, not staff, be responsible for putting their phones in the holders and ensuring immediate access in emergencies because the phones are not locked up and can be easily retrieved. Additionally, the policy includes language that accommodates medical exemptions. [Follow this link to read the Student Cell Phone Policy]
Brunson concluded his presentation by expressing his strong support for the policy: “I am a full advocate for districts being able to put together a plan that works for their student body,” he stated. He believes BH-BL’s success stems from the collaborative process and the compromise it offers students.
The board echoed Brunson’s sentiments, praising the policy’s effectiveness and the positive changes it brought about. “While we support the district’s policy that cell phone usage at the elementary and middle schools is prohibited, we would prefer that school districts have local control and flexibility in managing cell phone use in the high schools, especially given the success BH-BL High School is having,” adds Board of Education President Lakshmi Nagarajan.