Should cellphones be banned in all Massachusetts schools? Lawmakers offer several options.
Lawmakers in Massachusetts are looking into possibly banning cellphones in schools across the state.
There are more than half-a-dozen school proposals on Beacon Hill right now.
Each one has a wide range of ideas and requests. One is to ban the use of phones during instruction time. Another requires each school district to create a pouch system. There's also a proposal to create a commission to study phones and bans.
"Bell to bell, no cellphones"
Of the legislative proposals, one is called The Study Act, put forth by Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell. It has the backing of the Massachusetts Teachers Association (MTA).
"That would require all districts to create a plan that would have bell to bell, no cellphones. Bell to bell, beginning of the day to the end of the day," explained MTA President Max Page. "We have a number of school districts where they have done this, and from overall, what our members say is that it dramatically changes the school environment."
Brockton, Methuen and Lowell are just a few districts on the list.
"They range from the full ban all day long, others say that students can have them between classes, they're locked up in different ways," said Page. "Districts do it already and they do it even sometimes class to class because they have these pouches they are called, and as the kids come in each day they have to put them in there."
Phones in lockers
"I think we should definitely have it in our locker, but I don't think we should use them," said Veronica Churilove, a middle school student in Watertown.
Some parents disagree with an outright ban, saying it could be a safety issue. Their hope is that any ban comes with caveats.
"Any time they are supposed to use it, they should have access to cellphones, but definitely not used during school time," said Victoria Churilove, Veronica's mother.
"During school if they start texting to each other that might be a distraction," said Paul Khalarian, a grandfather of a middle school student. "Only thing they would need is if they have to get out to call their parents or grandparents to pick them up."
