A recent conversation with State Rep. Mark Tisdel (R-Rochester) changed my mind about smartphones in schools.
Earlier this week, a law banning them during instruction time was signed into law by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. Initially, I, like other parents, was skeptical of this legislation as it moved through Lansing.
photo courtesy Michigan House Republicans
My wife and I parent two school aged children in the same district. One goes to a middle school where phones are banned; the other attends a high school where these decisions are made on a class-by-class basis. I believe their experiences provide some insight into how the ban will actually work when it is rolled out this fall.
At my son’s middle school, even though a ban is in place, I regularly get texts from him on days when I am working remotely and he knows I can bring the lunch or even the hat he forgot to his school for him. He usually does this right before his first hour class starts or when passing between classes. If the law signed this week were in place now, he would not be violating it.
At my other student’s high school, texts are much less frequent even though smartphones are permitted. At least two classes ban them with one having a bulletin board full of sleeves for each student to place their device in. In my student’s engineering class, the teacher not only allows phones but encourages students to use them as a learning tool, helping to solve problems in class.
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Under the new law, this also will be allowed.
Tisdel pointed out motivation for the legislation was to “let schools know we have their backs.” He pointed out in many cases if a teacher tries to put a ban in place in their class, administration may not support them. Or if any administrator puts forth a school wide prohibition, upper administration or a school board may not back them.
Similar legislation was shot down last year when Republicans were the minority in both chambers – they now have a slim majority in the state House. Tisdel chalks up last year’s defeat to politics and adds as the issue has gotten more notoriety it has evolved to gain bipartisan support.
He points to the Avondale School District, a portion of which is located in his state House district. There, a smartphone ban was extended to the district high school with the principal testifying before state officials that fighting and disciplinary referrals dropped by 80% this academic year.
With school violence more of a concern than ever, it is understandable why some parents want to have direct access to their child. The new law also addresses this – students are still allowed to possess their devices. Tisdel says the hope he and other architects of the law hope to achieve is curbing both distractions and a device that can result in embarrassing and even bullying activity in school.
That’s a notion all parents should be able to support.
Jeff Payne is regional news editor of The Macomb Daily and News-Herald.
