Evanston Township High School Restricts Use Of Cell Phones In Class

EVANSTON, IL — In an effort to decrease distractions and improve instruction, Evanston Township High School administrators adopted new rules restricting the use of cell phones in classrooms.

The policy takes effect with the 2024 summer school session. Each classroom will have a phone storage unit where students will be required to place their phones during class.

"Our plan is to limit access to cell phones during class time in order to eliminate its disruption in the learning process and to ensure that students are fully present not only academically, but also socially and emotionally," administrators said Friday in a statement announcing the limits. "To this end, the research shows that physical separation from the phone in the classroom setting is best for students."

The previous policy, adopted in 2022, called for phones to be silenced and put away during class.

Under the new policy, students can use their phones during free periods, lunchtime or at The Hub student center.

In case of an emergency during class time, parents should call the dean's office and students should notify their classroom teacher.

Administrators said students will be permitted access to their phones in a lockdown or shelter-in-place situation "if it is determined to be the safest, necessary and appropriate action."

According to a recent survey, the use of a phone in an emergency was the top reason cited by parents of students who take phones to school, followed by getting in touch and coordinating transportation and appointments.

Two thirds of parents of children in grades K-12 surveyed by the National Parents Union in February said their children have their own cell phone, and more than four of five children with phones spend at least two hours a day on them, the parents reported.

The survey found 79 percent of students with phones take them to school.

Just 5 percent of students were allowed to use their cell phones without limitation at school, while 40 percent were sometimes allowed to use them and 43 percent were only permitted the use of phones if they have a medical condition or disability that make it necessary.

While Illinois has no state law in place regulating the use of cell phone at schools, other state legislatures have taken action.

A state law passed last month in Indiana bans the use of portable wireless devices, like cell phones, during class time — other than for emergency, health care, disabilities or educational purposes. Districts must come up with policies governing their use this summer.

“It’s becoming a major problem,” Indiana State Teachers Association John O’Neal representative testified in support of the bill, Chalkbeat reported. “Students aren’t motivated in class because they’re distracted by their devices.”

Florida was the first state to legislate limits to the use of cell phone sat school last year, while Oklahoma, Vermont and Kansas have also adopted "phone-free schools" laws, according to the Associated Press.

And while data from the National Center for Education Statistics indicates that more than three quarters of U.S. schools have rules restricting non-academic cell phone use, the AP reported enforcement varies widely.

ETHS school officials also provided a document with a series of links to articles, studies and videos regarding the use of cell phones in classrooms and its effects on students.

Students who violate the policy will first be warned. Further violations will require their parents to be notified and a third violation will result in a referral to the dean, according to school officials.

Administrators plan to hold an online meeting to discuss the new policy at 6:30 p.m. on May 20.