While students return to class this month, their cellphones and other devices won't always be joining them.
School District 27 is implementing new policies around cellphone use in the classroom at the direction of the Ministry of Education. These new measures are designed to reduce distractions and increase student engagement with their work and one another. SD27 superintendent Cheryl Lenardon said that these restrictions don't just apply to cellphones, but device use in the classroom in general.
"It's digital devices. Originally it was interpreted as a cellphone ban and some people were thrilled and some people were really upset, but it was never that," Lenardon explained. "Every district is going to intentionally address this with some kind of policy and schools are going to address it in their codes of conduct."
Lenardon said each school will be addressing cellphone and device use in their own way and will communicate any changes with the parents. All SD27 is doing is mandating that each school update their codes of conduct.
"In general you are going to see elementary schools, for the most part, having (a rule) about no cellphones at school or during the school day. Generally, in the high school, it's going to say during class time."
At Peter Skene Ogden Secondary School principal Caitlin Currie is planning on rolling out "common sense" restrictions on cell phone use. She said she knows it will represent a change for staff, students and families but one she thinks will be positive.
"There have always been guidelines in classrooms or a school around cellphone use. Some of the benefits of this (new policy) is there will be a common language and that's always easier for both students and adults to navigate," Currie remarked. "Students will know some teachers had very strict guidelines around phone use in their class and some are more permissive."
Going forward Currie said phones will not be allowed in places like the school's wood and machines shops, the gym, change rooms and washrooms. While in the past Currie said it was generally assumed phones would not be allowed in these places, going forward this prohibition will be more explicit.
In classrooms, meanwhile, students will be asked to put their phones away during instructional time, Currie said. This could include students leaving their phones in their lockers, storing them in a locked container in the classroom or relying on the honour system, none of which are new measures.
"I think it won't be a surprise to students or parents that phones are a source of distraction at times to learning and we also see phones cause students distress at times as well. I think we're all aware social media has many positives but it also has some challenges, in particular, for youth," Currie said. "I think the general tone that we're receiving from the Ministry of Education is 'what can we do to help kids focus on learning when they're here at school?'"
At Horse Lake Elementary School principal Murray Helmer said the expectation will be that students will give their cellphones to teachers at 8:15 a.m. to be kept in a locked box until the end of the school day at 2:22 p.m. Parents who wish to contact their children will be able to do so by calling the school's front office.
Helmer provided the Free Press with a copy of the new code of conduct which outlined three exceptions to the cellphone restrictions. These include if it's being used as part of an individualized education plan to support the student's educational needs, if it is being used to monitor a student's medical condition such as diabetes and if it's being used for a specific classroom learning opportunity communicated to the school and parents.
"Any violation of the electronic device expectations laid out above will result in the confiscation of the device and the parent/guardian will be asked to come to the school to pick up the device," the new policy reads.
Currie said a common concern she hears from parents, which she expects to hear more of this school year, is immediate and easy connection with their children. She remarked the school understands this concern and that going forward parents will be able to call the front desk to leave a message. If it's an emergency the school secretary will pass the message on to the child immediately.
While she expects some pushback from the student body over the new cellphone policies, Currie said she believes they'll come to accept it. She noted she and her staff have already been having dialogues with students who have agreed phone use presents challenges to classroom learning.
"We'll have a lot of conversations about what appropriate use of phones looks like in a professional and learning environment. It is a school rule and like all school rules and if you're encountering trouble adhering to that rule you will find yourself having more frequent conversations of a disciplinary nature," Currie said.
Currie encourages anyone with questions about the new cellphone use policies to reach out to her at the school. She noted again that these changes are being made with the best interests of students in mind to create a caring and supportive environment for everyone.
"We encourage parents to have conversations (about cellphone use) with their students ahead of time," Currie said. "I think it's a really good time to talk about your child's social media usage with them. I think it's a really good conversation to have openly and frequently."
