N.L. government mulling cellphone ban in middle school, high school classrooms
CBC
While textbooks, paper and pencils are back-to-school staples, there is one item teachers want to see less of in the classroom: cellphones.
The provincial government agrees. The Department of Education is drafting a new personal electronic device policy that could increase school cellphone restrictions from kindergarten to Grade 12.
Education Minister Krista Lynn Howell said a blanket policy is already in place for younger children. For K-6 students, cellphones and other personal devices aren't allowed at all.
Devices are allowed for junior high and high school students, but only for educational purposes.
Until now, it's been up to the administration for each individual school to decide how they manage phones in the classroom. But Howell said it's time for a uniform policy for all students.
"There are particular challenges in our classrooms around the use of cellphones and personal devices," she said. "We need a policy that covers all of our schools and that will be enforced right across Newfoundland and Labrador."
Howell's idea of an ideal policy follows the lead of provinces such as Ontario and Saskatchewan, which recently implemented cellphone bans in their public school systems.
But the Education Department will consult with teachers, staff, and the Newfoundland and Labrador Teachers' Association before deciding to forbid phones outright.
"Whether it's all-out ban and treating it the same as we do cigarettes or vapes, or if there's a more blended option that we can use, we're hoping to draw some of that information from our consultations," Howell said.
She said the goal is to promote a healthier learning environment.
"It's disruptive, it's causing teachers challenges with having students pay attention. There's so much interaction between students, and there's the potential for online bullying," Howell said.
Trent Langdon, president of the NLTA, estimates that cellphones take away between 50 and 60 per cent of students' focus during the school day.
The teachers' union supports drafting a new policy, Langdon said, but said they need to make sure it is enforceable and that the union is consulted.
"Our administrators, our principals and assistant principals, they know the game, they're the experts on the ground. They've been dealing with this for a while. So we expect consultation and they should have a key role in this," Langdon said.
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