On August 14, 2024, Dr. Jeffrey Fecher, the Superintendent of Abington School District in Pennsylvania, announced the latest ban on students using cell phones on campus for the 2024-2025 school year. Starting from September, middle school and high school students in Abington School District will be required to refrain from bringing cell phones during class.
The statement mentioned, “In middle and high schools, we will provide cellphone stands for classroom use. This means that every time students enter the classroom, they will place their phones in pockets on the stand and retrieve them before leaving the class.” “In elementary school, the principal will continue to enforce the prohibition of cellphone use during school hours and address individual issues in grades K-5.”
The statement also stated that designated personnel in the district will communicate the implementation details to parents before the school year starts, including exceptions for students who need to use phones for health or other reasons.
Abington School District, located in Montgomery County in the Philadelphia suburbs, consists of 7 elementary schools, 1 middle school, and 1 high school.
Many states and school districts in the United States have instituted bans or restrictions on cell phone use on campuses. Last year, Florida became the first state to pass a law requiring public schools to prohibit students from using phones in class and accessing social media. Some districts go further by banning phone use throughout the school day.
On July 4th, the Pennsylvania Senate passed a bill encouraging districts to restrict students’ daytime phone use to improve their mental health and academic performance.
Dr. Fecher stated, “While Pennsylvania has not yet signed such legislation, the state legislature has debated several proposed bills. With new legislation imminent and many parents expressing concerns about students’ daytime phone use, I have requested our principals to develop plans to help reduce these distractions in our schools.”
“We will continue to monitor the bills currently in the state legislature to see if any modifications need to be made to our plans, and like all new procedures implemented by schools, we will assess the effectiveness of this measure and make adjustments as needed.”
Dr. Fecher believes the new cell phone policy will have a positive impact on students. “We believe that these changes will not only eliminate distractions in the classroom but also benefit our students socially and emotionally. As more evidence suggests that students’ mental health is increasingly impacted negatively by phones over time.”
He also mentioned the summer reading book of Abington School District’s leadership team, “The Anxious Generation,” authored by social psychologist Jonathan Haidt, which explains the harm of phones to students.
Lastly, Dr. Fecher expressed gratitude for the support and understanding of parents and guardians, as the implementation of these new procedures aims to benefit the entire school community, especially our students, teachers, and staff.
Since Dr. Fecher took office as superintendent in November 2018, he has been dedicated to enhancing communication and community engagement, and in 2023, he received the Key Communicator Award from the Pennsylvania School Public Relations Association (PenSPRA).
As more Americans realize the addiction of children to phones and the harm of phones to children’s education and mental health, prohibiting children from using phones on campus is becoming a trend. A study published in 2019 found that teenagers who spend over three hours a day on social media double their risks of anxiety and depression. According to data from the U.S. Department of Education, approximately 76% of schools prohibited the use of phones for non-academic purposes during the 2021-2022 school year.