INDIANAPOLIS — School is a time for kids to learn and retain the knowledge they are being taught.
Many school leaders say cell phones have proven to be a distraction.
By next school year, all public schools in Indiana must have a policy for the use of cell phones in class.
Some schools already have a policy in place while others are still figuring out how to craft theirs.
Westfield Intermediate School has had one in place for three years.
"Snapchat, TikTok, Instagram, you need to be 13 to even be on those social media sites,” Annette Patchett, principal of Westfield Intermediate school, said. “Our students are already coming with those placed on their phones at nine and ten."
Following the COVID-19 pandemic, Westfield Schools say students were using their phones more than ever. They say it was causing problems.
"Pictures and kids posting things that kids weren't aware they were posting,” Patchett said.
So, they implemented a policy.
At Westfield Intermediate School, students aren't allowed to have their phones at all while on school grounds. They are required to keep them in their lockers.
Since then, the principal says some of those problems have resolved themselves.
"In the last three years, our discipline has decreased involving social media and pictures and students disrupted because of cellphone,” Patchett said.
At Wayne Township Schools, they have practices not policies. Those practices vary depending on the school.
The superintendent of Wayne Township Schools, Dr. Jeff Butts, says he supports this legislation. He says he will be consulting with students ahead of enacting a specific set of rules.
"We want our students to have their voice heard when we are talking about this policy, so we are going to be going around to our secondary schools, meeting with our school leaders to get some feedback from them before we take a policy to our board for approval,” Butts said.
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The new law does allow for cellphones to be used for educational purposes, as well as if someone needs it due to a disability or medical issue.
