SENATE APPROVES BAN ON CELL PHONES IN THE CLASSROOM
(AUSTIN) — Outside of a few exceptions, public school students would no longer be permitted to use their personal cell phones during classroom instruction under a bill passed by the Senate Tuesday. National teacher surveys show that cell phones top the list of classroom disruptions, said bill author and Education K-16 Committee chair Senator Brandon Creighton of Conroe. “Texas educators have increasingly voiced concerns about cell phones disrupting the classroom, and the data backs them up,” he said. “Over 70 percent of national high school teachers say that cell phone distraction is one of the major problems that cause disruption.”
Creighton’s bill, SB 2365, would give districts the flexibility to determine how they want to implement the ban, but all policies must include exemptions for learning disability accommodations or for some medical purpose. Aside from those exceptions, however, phones must stay out of the hands of students during class time. “During class, students should be focused on their lessons, not on their phones,” said Creighton. “By getting these devices out of Texas classrooms while instruction is underway, the bill ensures that teachers can teach without competing with Twitter or TikTok feeds or any other social media and students can engage without distraction.”
SB 34, by Senator Kevin Sparks of Midland, seeks to put more resources into the state’s rural volunteer fire departments.
One district that has implemented classroom cellphone ban found it to be transformative. At an early April hearing on the bill, Grandview ISD Superintendent Kirby Basham told members of the Education K-16 Committee that restricting cell phones on school campuses led to profound results after they were implemented last year. “Students no longer experience the buzz of constant notifications or the anxiety of missing out,” said Basham. “That cycle has been broken.” He added that students report feeling less stress and more present while at school. The benefits go beyond the classroom as well. “Lunches are loud again, filled with laughter and conversation, not with students isolated by screens,” said Kirby. “Hallways are loud as well and students aren’t bumping into each other because they have their face in a screen...overall, the positive outcomes of the no cell phone policy at Grandview ISD has been nothing short of phenomenal.” Teachers love the policy too, he said, with classroom discipline seeing significant improvement and increased engagement from students during instruction. “Meaningful interactions have replaced virtual ones,” said Kirby. “Students are now thriving academically and socially.”
Grandview chose to implement the ban by requiring students to put their phones in magnetically locked pouches when they get to school each morning. This keeps phones out of class, but still allows access in case of an emergency. “Each morning, students securely lock their phones knowing that if a personal emergency arises during the school day our staff will ensure that they have the means to communicate with their families,” said Basham
Also Tuesday, the Senate approved a bill aimed at bolstering volunteer rural fire departments. Despite covering 85 percent of the state, these vital departments are woefully underfunded, said bill author and Midland senator Kevin Sparks. “With an annual cap of $30 million, and grant requests often exceeding $43 million, the program faces a $22 million annual shortfall,” he said. Sparks’ bill, SB 34, would increase the cap on the Rural Fire Department Assistance Program fund to $40 million. It also taps the Texas A&M Forest Service and West Texas A&M to conduct a comprehensive study on wildfire risk and mitigation. The forest service will also maintain a current database of all firefighting equipment in the state to improve coordination and planning between departments as they respond to fires blazing across hundreds of miles of the Texas countryside.
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