The education department has a few weeks to draft a statewide plan for how to eliminate or limit cellphones in classrooms. News4’s Joseph Olmo asked some Virginians what they think about the possibility of a school phone ban.
Virginia has released its completed guidance for public schools to implement Gov. Glenn Youngkin's executive order for cellphone-free education.
Beginning Jan. 1, 2025, students must turn off their phones and keep them stored away all day, including during lunch and between class periods, according to the guidance the Virginia Department of Education released Tuesday.
"This guidance will ensure K-12 Virginia students have a distraction-free environment to focus on learning and reduce the alarming mental health crisis and chronic health conditions from cell phones and social media affecting Virginia students," the education department said in a release on Tuesday.
How does the cellphone ban differ for Virginia elementary, middle and high schools?
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In terms of age-appropriate restrictions, the policy varies for elementary and secondary public schools.
- Elementary: If a parent determines an elementary student needs to take a cellphone or personal electronic communication device to school, it must be stored, off and away from the student during the school day. Students can't use them on school grounds before or after school.
- Middle school students should not have easily available cellphones or personal electronic communication devices during the bell-to-bell school day. School systems should create local policies to determine whether or not students can use phones and devices on school property before and after school.
- High school students should not have easily accessible cellphones or personal electronic communication devices during the bell-to-bell school day. Students may use their cellphones on school grounds before and after school.
The "bell-to-bell" definition of cellphone-free education was also part of the draft guidance the VDOE put out in August.
Where will students put their cellphones during the day?
While the VDOE said students cannot have their cellphones “on their person” during the bell-to-bell school day, including in their pockets, it's up to school districts to decide how and where to store the cellphones.
School districts might allow students to store their phones in backpacks, lockers, locked pouches or in a designated place in the classroom, among other options, the VDOE said.
Some local districts have already put their own restrictions into place. In Fairfax County, schools are using magnetic pouches to keep kids off their phones.
Are there any exemptions to Virginia's school cellphone ban? What about emergencies?
The education department said it received thousands of public comments and feedback before finalizing the policy.
Parents of children with medical needs, particularly those who use apps for health monitoring, voiced their concerns. The VDOE said those students can get a medical exemption to the bell-to-bell policy included in their Individualized Education Plan, 504 plan and/or individualized health care plans.
Many parents also said in their feedback to the state they were concerned about how to reach their children during emergencies.
"It became very apparent there are general gaps in parent, teacher and school communication resulting in parents feeling like they must communicate directly with their child for both emergency and non-emergency situations," the VDOE said. "Specifically, concerns focused on the ability for a parent to contact their child in a school-based emergency including during or immediately after lockdowns."
In cases of emergencies, the VDOE's guidance states that local school districts must come up with plans to communicate directly with parents and establish reunification plans for children and parents.
School divisions must also publicly share how staff are trained to manage crisis and emergency situations, re-unification plans and the family notification process during crisis situations. Read here for more about the guidance for how schools should handle emergencies.
What's next for Virginia's school cellphone ban?
The state education department is set to release an "administrator's toolkit" on Thursday to help school leaders implement their cellphone policies, and districts must adopt and implement policies that align with the state's "bell-to-bell" guidance by Jan. 1, 2025.
State education officials plan to review the guidance at the end of the school year to consider ways to refine and improve it, the VDOE said.
Go here to read the VDOE's complete guidance for cellphone-free education.
