The Lakeside Union School District already has a ban on cellphone use in the classroom, but after hearing from parents about safety concerns in case of an emergency, a pilot program to see what works best is up for discussion on Monday night.
Bryleigh Stephenson is an eighth grader at River Valley Charter School. For now, she can have the phone on her, but she says students are expected to silence it and put it away during classroom time.
“They can have it on us, but if they hear it, they have to take it away,” Bryleigh said. “If it’s learning time, you’re not going to be on your phone. If the teacher is teaching, you need to be more focused on the teacher.”
But after California Gov. Gavin Newsom has doubled down on his 2019 law that allowed districts to come up with their own cellphone restriction policies, Lakeside School Board President Andrew Hayes is taking a closer look.
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“We want to make sure that we are aligning — not just with state law with our policy, but also with it balancing safety. I will tell you that is the number one concern with parents across my district. What happens if there is an emergency? How am I going to get a hold of my student?" Hayes said during a press conference previewing his pilot project proposal.
That's also how high school senior Aaralyn Stephenson feels. She's at a different school district but echoes the same concerns that parents and students have all over the state, and perhaps the country.
“I feel like I understand that you get really distracted easily by our cellphones, but, at the same time, if there’s a lot of lockdowns happening in the United States and there’s a lot of school shootings. If I were going to the bathroom and that were to happen, I should be able to say goodbye to my family one more time in case that were to happen,” Aaralyn said.
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Hayes announced that the district’s summer survey, which gathered parents' and teachers' opinions regarding cellphones, shows that a majority support a ban during school hours. That's why he will propose a pilot project at Lakeside Middle School and an elementary school to do just that.
“Be able to see on the ground how students react to strengthening the policy,” Hayes said.
He said the point is to make sure students stay focused in the classroom while also giving parents' the peace of mind they can reach their child in an emergency.
If approved, the pilot project would start in the new year.
