Trend of banning cell phones in schools is growing in western Washington

There’s a growing trend of banning cell phones in schools in western Washington. The Peninsula School District (PSD) is one of the newest districts to join the list of those with a cell phone or technology policy.

The PSD policy states students will only turn on their devices before and after the regular school day and during lunch, unless there’s an emergency situation. The policy for phones and related technology, including smartwatches, also extends beyond the school day and class time to attending school-sponsored or school-related activities.

PSD’s policy also states students can be disciplined for violating the policy. KOMO News asked the district for data on any discipline that’s been handed out since the policy started at the beginning of the school year in September 2023, but the district has not yet responded, since they are still on winter break.

The Bellevue School District (BSD) has a similar policy in place only allowing students to use their devices before and after school and during lunch.

Interlake High School in the BSD also has an extensive policy that spells out its cell phone practice in service to their core values of “Integrity, Humanity, and Scholarship.” That policy says, “When cell phones are put away, students will focus, connect, and engage with each other more deeply.”

There’s a growing body of research supporting keeping cell phones out of the classroom.

High school students, age 16, saw their test scores increase by 6.4% after their school banned cell phones, according to the organization Away For the Day, which is a group that promotes no cell phone use in school.

Researchers gave students a series of memory tasks to perform. Some of the students could keep their phone with them, while others had to leave their phones in another room. In the end, this University of Chicago study found those with the phone performed significantly worse on the tasks, than the students who did not have a phone at hand.

In school districts where there’s no specified policy on cell phone usage, there are teachers who set rules for devices in their individual classrooms.

And for students, parents, and teachers who would like to see policy added to their school or district, Away for the Day provides resources on its website.