ROANOKE, Va. – The Virginia Department of Education is releasing its final guidance on creating cell phone-free education in the Commonwealth on Monday, and you have until Sunday to provide feedback. (Cell Phone-Free Education Draft Guidance & Resources | Virginia Department of Education)
The department released its draft guidance last month, which said that students’ phones should be turned off and put away from the moment the first bell rings until the moment the last bell rings. (Virginia Department of Education released draft guidance for cell phone policies (wsls.com))
It’s doing this because Governor Glenn Youngkin issued an executive order, which asked it to create guidance for public schools to adopt policies banning cell phones.
With the final guidance coming out soon, 10 News wanted to see how local school divisions are doing.
Superintendent Amy Blake-Lewis with Henry County Public Schools said there’s not much of an issue.
“Our students know that it has to be put away during the day and that it’s only accessible to them at lunch and those transition times. So, I don’t think that a more restrictive policy for us is necessarily gonna change too many things,” said Blake-Lewis.
Currently, Henry County Public Schools prohibits cell phones. However, secondary students can use them during lunch and hallway transitions. Consequences range from having the phone taken away to in or out-of-school suspension.
Blake-Lewis said Henry County Public Schools will comply with the Virginia Department of Education’s final guidance.
“My staff and I will sit down and we will review that guidance and we will crosswalk it with current Henry County School policy and then we will bring just some outline information to our board at the October board meeting and then we’ll bring any type of revised policy that is needed to the November meeting and that will sit for 30 days for their final approval in December for implementation in January,” said Blake-Lewis.
10 News also reached out to Salem City Schools.
“As we gain a deeper understanding of the negative impacts that cell phones and social media can have on students, we are compelled to rethink and change how students interact with these devices during school hours. Early feedback suggests that students and families are largely supportive of our efforts to limit cell phone use at school. While there have been a few instances of noncompliance, most students are meeting our expectations,” said Superintendent Curtis Hicks with Salem City Schools in an email.
Roanoke City Public Schools sent an email that said, “We look forward to receiving the VDOE’s guidance, and as has been previously stated at our School Board meetings, our staff will review the guidance and adjust as needed. We are still early in the school year, but so far we have heard positive feedback about our updated cell phone rules and have seen that our students are engaged and ready to learn in the classroom.”