Minnesota cell phone ban in schools: Push for statewide K-12 bell to bell policy
Push for statewide cell phone ban in schools
With school back in session the subject of students and screen time is front and center again. FOX 9’s Maury Glover has the latest.
(FOX 9) - A growing push to ban cell phones in Minnesota schools from the first bell to the last is gaining momentum, with parents, educators and lawmakers calling for statewide action.
Push for a phone-free school day
What we know:
Minnesota Unplugged, a group advocating for phone-free schools, organized a meeting of politicians, parents and educators at the Iron Ranger restaurant on Grand Avenue to make the case for a statewide kindergarten through 12th grade bell-to-bell cell phone ban.
The group says phones pull students away from learning in the classroom and from building social skills outside of it.
'We really want the kids talking to each other"
What they're saying:
"What we are calling for is seven hours of uninterrupted time, so that they can be present with classmates, they can present with teachers, and there's not that constant pull," said Grant Eustice of MN Unplugged.
Parents at the meeting echoed that concern, saying the stakes go beyond academics.
"We think that they can be a distraction," said Catherine Higgins Whiteside, a parent who attended the meeting. "We want our kids to learn. We want them to get along and be members of a strong community, and that means human interaction."
Higgins Whiteside added that the issue is about more than just learning. "It's really important for a healthy society that we learn how to get along, to work out our differences, to talk to each other as humans, to have a conversation, and I want to make sure that we are supporting that as parents," she said.
How Minnesota stacks up
Big picture view:
A Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit called the Institute for Families and Technology says Minnesota is falling behind on this issue.
According to the organization, 24 other states and the District of Columbia already have bell-to-bell bans in place. Minnesota's current law only requires school districts to have a cell phone policy — without specifying what that policy should be — earning the state a "D" on the Institute's Phone-Free Schools State Report Card.
What's next:
We've heard from schools nationwide that have those bell-to-bell policies on the books for high schools that lunchrooms are louder, that students are actually ordering more food doing basic human things other than swiping may take away from them," said Emily Rapp of the Institute for Families and Technology.
According to Minnesota Unplugged, State Rep. Erin Maye Quade is planning to introduce a statewide bell-to-bell ban during the next legislative session. The group says the goal is simple: give students seven hours a day free from the constant pull of their phones.