A policy that would ban all cell phone use by students between 8 a.m. and 3:13 p.m. will be voted on by the Atlantic Community School District Board of Directors on Wednesday, Feb. 12. This is a change to the current AHS policy that restricts cell phone use during class time but allows students to access them between classes and at lunch.
School Board President Laura McLean, at the Jan. 8 meeting, asked teachers and parents to let her know their thoughts on the new policy. AHS Journalism editors invited McLean to explain the policy change.
The Iowa School Board is in the process of adopting this state-wide phone ban which is currently optional for high schools. The suggested policy, said McLean, is intended to help students get educated to the best of their capacity.
Principal Heather McKay is satisfied with the current policy in place at AHS. McKay said, “I don’t think our policy will need changed…it’s going to be battles that don’t need to be battles.” McKay has also followed the current policy, which allows phone usage between classes and during lunch, the same as the students herself and has found it to be beneficial. She said, “I have noticed significant changes for myself just by following [the policy]. My productivity has improved because it’s a choice to not be on my phone.”
The Iowa legislature is considering a statewide cell phone policy to ban cell phones during instructional time. Individual districts can determine what counts as “instructional time.” The current AHS plan would meet the restrictions proposed by the state. McKay said, “I understand the intent behind proposed legislation, but they don’t have to manage it. They don’t do any of the education with it.”
McLean is concerned about students’ development. “I’ve done a lot of reading about it, that [cell phones] are harmful to kids’ development.” McLean said she thinks phones “need to be much more limited, like just screen time, interaction in general, social media in particular, but just screens in general.”
McLean said she is personally in favor of restricting phones from 8 a.m. to 3:13. “I do think that there has not been enough attention paid to the effect of screen time on, specifically on child development…birth to 18. I’m deeply concerned about the effects that it’s having, and about the fact that we’re not being more thoughtful.”
McLean expressed concerns about AI as well but clarified, “I’m not at all like anti these things, because I know that they have a lot of benefits, but I think probably every person in this room could talk about some of the harms they’ve seen to themselves or to others.”
McLean prefers an all-day ban over allowing students to use their phones between classes. “If you’re looking at your phone in between classes, you’re still having access to a lot of the harmful content that is on social media.” She also expressed concern about student distractedness after viewing phones between classes. “You can’t just shut that off; you carry that on into the next class. And I think there’s something to be said for making [school] a protected space.”
McLean acknowledged that an all-day ban might increase phone traffic in the office. “I’m really interested in what the school secretaries would think about that, because all of a sudden, there’d be a lot more traffic in the office, but people would use the phones there….Parents are always free to call the office and relay messages, and that’s how we did it for years.”
McLean said she knew students need to learn how to engage with technology. “In raising my own kids…we had our kids engage with technology…. We have to prepare them for the world as it’s going to be.
McLean said her youngest child is 21 but said as more data has been coming in she is more concerned about the “harm that’s done from the exposure…I’m more firm about the later…and the less students are engaging with screens.”
McLean said she had not heard much from the community regarding the proposed change. Those wishing to express their thoughts on the issue can contact any of the school board members. Their contact information is here.
The board will give the proposed policy its third and final reading at their meeting on Wednesday, Feb. 12, at 6:30 p.m. Guidelines for speaking at a board meeting are as follows, according to the ACSD website:
