The day that phones were officially banned is a day we all saw as inevitable, and yet unbelievable. While students cycle through the five stages of grief in the first weeks of school, it will be difficult to appreciate the potential benefits of a phone-free environment.
Governor Tina Kotek signed Executive Order 25-09, aiming to improve learning in schools and students’ mental health. Kotek also hopes this will foster an environment in which students feel comfortable. School will again be a place filled with joy to learn and find belonging with their peers, while avoiding distraction from their devices.
Phones not only affect students individually disrupt the classroom environment as a whole. Ask anyone who’s been in the school the past couple of years, and they could tell you that a striking amount of class time is eaten up due to phones. Whether it be teachers bashing on them and/or confiscating them.
However, this executive order doesn’t just apply to cell phones, but all personal electronic devices (PEDs). This means no smart watches, smart glasses, iPads (even if attached to keyboards). Any electronic device capable of accessing the internet, making or receiving calls or texts, and/or accessing social media is included.
Mental Health is a growing concern in youth today, one of the main contributing factors being technology and social media. Studies have shown it has a strong connection to increased anxiety and depression in adolescence. Governor Kotek hopes to see this improve with the reduction in screentime for students.
Health Teacher Mr. Alvarez at WHS says, “At first, when I saw the new cell phone policy, I thought it was an appropriate response…As time has progressed, I have been feeling a lot more hopeful for a variety of reasons. We have incredibly high rates of anxiety and depression in youth in today’s world.”
“I feel like phones and media have caused young people to be less present and make fewer face-to-face connections…These components are present throughout the numbers on mental health rates.” Said Mr. Alvarez. “I think having the new cell phone policy will allow students to better make connections and increase empathy in a classroom.”
Ms. Zimmerman, another teacher at WHS, says, “I am overall looking forward to seeing screen time decrease in our school, even if it comes with some growing pains for our community. I hope to see more conversation and creativity when students have downtime, maybe turning to a friend to chat or a book to read instead of the quick dopamine hit of the cell phone.”
The potential benefits of a phone detox are going to take time to reveal themselves. Especially with the many concerns some of our students have, but if this policy is implemented correctly, Oregon could see serious improvements in students’ social skills and academic performance.
On the other hand, in a perfect world, schools would function no differently without technology, but students have gotten far too used to having their cell phones as a tool. Rather than removing PEDs entirely, might students benefit more from learning how to responsibly use/not use their phones, or rather, the consequences of using them irresponsibly? Especially because phones won’t be confiscated in future workplaces.
Some further concerns from students have been, in the event of an emergency in school or at home, being unable to contact parents. Often, a parent will need to have immediate communication with their student, and they won’t have time to do it through the attendance office.
While challenges past how students will deal with withdrawal from their phones are gonna take time to adjust to, students will overall benefit from less screen time. But will staff become more lenient on the policy throughout the year? Will students continue to fight it and not reap the benefits? Only time will tell.