LINWOOD — Starting April 28, there are no cell phones during learning time. That’s the simple message on the homepage at Mainlandregional.net, the school district’s website.
Mainland Regional High School is instituting a ban on the use of personal electronic devices and cell phones in a pilot program extending through the end of the year.
Chief School Administrator Mark Marrone said the district established a Cell Phone/Electronic Device Committee at the start of the school year to address concerns related to student focus, attention and the impact of social media on mental health.
The committee developed and administered surveys to gather feedback from faculty and staff, parents and guardians, as well as students.
“The survey results provided valuable insights. Remarkably, 68 percent of parents and guardians expressed a need for stricter cell phone policies during class and instructional time. Furthermore, 88 percent of faculty and staff indicated that cell phones are a distraction in class and detract from in-person social interactions,” Marrone told the Sentinel.
“Additionally, 89 percent of faculty and staff noted that cell phones negatively affect students’ ability to focus. The majority of faculty and staff also felt that a more restrictive district-wide cell phone policy, rather than leaving it to teacher discretion, would create more consistent expectations for students.”
District administrators plan to gather data regarding implementation and develop responses over the summer to address issues identified during the pilot phase. Full implementation is expected in September.
Under Personal Electronic Device and Bring Your Own Device Policy 3514.1, students will continue to be permitted to bring their own personal laptop to school for use during instructional time but all other personal electronic devices including cell phones, tablets/iPads and smartwatches, will be prohibited during that time.
Instructional time is defined as any period during which a teacher or instructor is actively engaged in delivering content, facilitating learning or overseeing educational activities in alignment with the curriculum. Class time encompasses the entire scheduled duration of a class period, including the time allocated for instructional activities, independent work and transitions within the class structure.
Students will be permitted to use their devices during lunch, study hall and sub study hall and between classes “provided they do not create a disruption or cause students lateness to class.” They may not be used at any time in locker rooms, restrooms, the swimming pool of nurse’s office.
To enforce the policy, the district reserves the right to implement signal-blocking technologies, RF/EMF shielding and anti-tracking bags. An exemption is made for students when specified in an IEP or 504 plan.
Violators are subject to limitation, suspension or termination of usage under district policy 5131.
Faculty members are expected to contact parents/guardians and document each student violation. After contacting home and documenting the infraction on two different occasions, subsequent infractions will be referred to the vice principal for disciplinary action.
According to a presentation from the district, the committee developed separate surveys for faculty and staff, parents and guardians and students, and researched and discussed negative effects of the devices on student focus, attention, self-esteem, interpersonal interactions, learning and mental health.
The group also looked at more restrictive policies locally and nationally, including Egg Harbor Township and Cherry Hill school districts, where devices are not permitted during instructional time.
Nationally, Los Angeles County School District uses Yonder/RFID bags to prevent cell phone usage throughout the entire school day. They identified several issues with that, including second cell phones, smart watches and unlocking RFID bags during the school day.
Survey results show that 34 percent of parents/guardians regulate and limit their children’s cell phone usage, while 36 percent do not and 28 percent regulate but do not limit usage.
The three groups were asked whether they would support stricter usage policies in school if it meant contact between students and parents would be limited.
Results showed 43 percent strongly supported doing so, while 25 percent supported it, 14 percent were neutral, 11 percent opposed and 7 percent strongly opposed.
Respondents had the opportunity to rank four types of policies: Prohibit usage during instructional time, teacher discretion regarding usage (current policy), a complete ban and full access with guidelines.
The greatest number of respondents chose the first option, while the second option was close behind. A complete ban had less support and full access with guidelines brought up the rear.
Another question asked about the most significant effect of usage on learning. A majority of 69 percent chose “increased distractions in class,” followed by “detracts from in-person social interactions” (19 percent) and “enhances learning through quick information access” (4 percent).
Asked how they felt usage affected students’ ability to focus on classroom materials, 47 percent chose “negatively” while 42 percent picked “very negatively.”
Students were asked how they think cell phone usage during school hours affects their ability to focus on the lesson responded with 57 percent saying “not at all,” while 32 percent admitted “a little.” Nine percent grudgingly agreed to “somewhat.”
Responding to whether devices should be permitted during class time, 69 percent answered yes with restrictions, while 28 percent chose yes without restrictions.
“The new policy prohibits the use of personal electronic devices during class and instructional time, aligning with the survey responses and research findings. Interestingly, while the overwhelming majority of student respondents recognized the need for restrictions on cell phone use in school, they did not believe that cell phones impacted their ability to focus,” Marrone stated.
The committee pored over studies by the state Department of Education and experts in the field when creating the policy.
“Our committee also conducted research on the negative impact of cell phones and other personal electronic devices on student focus, self-esteem, interpersonal interactions, learning, and mental health. We reviewed restrictive policies implemented by other districts both locally and nationally,” Marrone stated. “These findings, along with Gov. Murphy’s comments on the subject and the NJDOE’s ‘Considerations for Establishing or Refining Policies for Cell Phone Use in School,’ helped shape our revised policy.”
According to a study released April 16 by the William J. Hughes Center for Public Policy at Stockton University, half of New Jersey voters support banning cell phones in K-12 schools, while 35 percent oppose and 14 percent are not sure. No differences in support were found between voters with any children currently enrolled in grades K-12 and those without school-age dependents.
However, there were partisan differences. Majorities of Republicans (57 percent) and Independents (54 percent) support banning cell phones, while 44 percent of Democrats do, though that does represent a plurality.
When it comes to the policy details, a plurality of 40 percent said devices should be locked away during classroom periods only. One-fourth said devices should be locked away for the entire school day and nearly the same rate (22 percent) said the use of devices should be banned, but students should not be required to lock them away. Only 8 percent said devices should not be restricted in any way in K-12 schools.
– By CRAIG D. SCHENCK/Sentinel staff
