Schools, state legislature unsubscribing to student cell phone use

As the clock hits 11:10 a.m. at Grand Island Senior High, the cafeteria staff is prepared for more than 650 freshmen to file in. Students fill the lunchroom, sitting down next to their friends while they wait for their section to be sent through the food line.

Teachers or school staff will tell you it wasn’t always this loud. In January 2024, the school district implemented a no phone policy. Students are expected to keep their phones put away from the moment the morning bell rings at 8:05 a.m. until the dismissal bell rings at 3:30 p.m.

Principal Calvin Hubbard has been working in Grand Island Schools for 23 years. He was part of the team that created the new cell phone policy.

“We've seen students go from using their cellphones at lunch and totally not interacting with each other to actually having face to face conversations,” Hubbard said. “Some kids even bring cards and play UNO, so it's really kind of neat to see.”

Nebraska Department of Education data shows more than three-fourths of Nebraska school districts have a policy around cell phone use. About a quarter restrict phone use all day, and more than half have a limited use policy, which is when students can use phones during lunch time or other breaks in the day.

“It does just help overall to be able to focus in class and get more work done,” Marley Helvey, a freshman at Westside High School in Omaha, said.

Helvey’s school implements a limited use policy. She said she appreciates having some use of her phone during the school day.

“It's more of a compromise for the students, because then they can be on their phones sometimes,” Helvey said. “It's also a compromise for the parents, because if they need to contact the student at any time, then they can. Then it's only like you're waiting 40 minutes to talk to your parent and not the whole 12 hour day.”

Helvey testified in support of a bill in the Nebraska Legislature that would require school districts to have a cell phone policy. State Senator Rita Sanders introduced the bill with backing from Gov. Jim Pillen.

“We have great teachers across the state,” Pillen said at the legislative hearing. “We have great processes in place, but we need to help.”

Lawmakers advanced the bill without opposition in the first round of debate. It must still pass through two more rounds.

David Bickham, research director for The Digital Wellness Lab at Boston Children’s Hospital, said staying connected is a positive aspect of cellphones, but the overall research is mixed. Technology can keep students connected, but it can also be a distraction to learning, he said. It all depends on how the device is used.

“If young people are using their phone for entertainment during classroom, it's unlikely to contribute to positive outcomes,” Bickham said. “But if you're teaching physics or something that's difficult to convey, or that can be conveyed through YouTube videos and really creative ways, then having them access those and watch them and talk about them could be a really effective learning strategy.”

Bickham added that in order for a policy to be effective, schools need to ensure students and parents are on board, especially since he said the main reason parents give their kid a phone is for communication.

Lisa and Jim Janvrin have a sixth grade son at Elkhorn Public Schools who has a phone to text or call his parents. They said they aren’t worried about being able to communicate with their son every second of the day.

Jim said the school keeps parents informed in emergency situations, like last April when an E-F-4 tornado tore through Eastern Nebraska and destroyed homes in Elkhorn, Bennington and Blair.

“What did we do 20 years ago, right?” Jim said. “The idea is that your schools will communicate back to the families, and they will get a hold of them.”

Elkhorn Public Schools, like many districts, allows students to use their phones in emergencies once they are safe.

Lisa Janvrin said she wants to help her son learn boundaries with technology, and she sees restricting phone use at school as a way to do that.

“It's kind of comparing if we were in the '90s growing up,” Lisa said. “If we took our TV, all of our magazines, our MTV, and we put it on our desk and sat there and tried to listen to a teacher. That would be extremely distracting, right? It's the same thing with the cell phones.”

The Janvrins also keep an eye on their son’s technology use at home with his iPad. They said both the school policy and their rules at home have helped their son’s school performance.

“His school work has dramatically shifted,” Jim said. “He doesn't miss assignments, grades are back up.”

Back at Grand Island Senior High, there’s been a 7% improvement in attendance, and almost 40% fewer behavior incidents needing help from an administrator or school resource officer, according to the district.

Grand Island Public Schools Superintendent Matt Fisher said while some students complain about the policy, they understand it.

“They really do appreciate having those six, seven hours a day where they don't feel that obligation to be engaged and really are able to re-engage at a personal level, rather than electronic level,” Fisher said.

Hubbard, the high school principal, said engagement in class and with peers has improved.

"When you walk through the hallways, you can just tell," Hubbard said. "You can see kids faces are up, looking forward. They're talking to each other, they're smiling instead of hands in front of them with their face down, and just aimlessly going through the hallways."