BEAUFORT COUNTY, S.C. (WSAV) - Students in Beaufort County have settled into a new policy: no phones or any electronic devices out during school hours.
Now, the rest of South Carolina schools are following in their footsteps, after the state mandated the policy.
“We actually were looking into it last year and doing some research on it and it was something that had come up from teachers and parents as a consideration, asking us to look at,” said Dr. Frank Rodriguez, Superintendent of Beaufort County Schools. “And so, we did that.”
This approach gave Beaufort County Schools a head start on a rule that has now been implemented statewide by the South Carolina Department of Education. At the beginning of this month, all schools in the state have banned students from having phones or personal electronic devices out during the school day.
“This is one of those things that I think frees students up to focus on their instruction, frees students up to focus on whatever is taking place. And it also frees students up to actually socialize a little bit with one another,” said Dr. Rodriguez.
The Department of Education stated that the purpose of their policy is to "create a phone-free school environment that fosters a positive learning experience free from electronic distractions."
Dr. Rodriguez added to that statement, “We want them focused on their academic learning and the teaching that teachers are delivering. So, this provides the opportunity to focus on that, rather than focus on notifications from your phone.”
Beaufort County implemented the policy at the start of the year, giving students time to adjust right away, rather than introducing the change mid-semester. While several parents initially expressed concerns about the impact on student safety, the district remained confident in their decision.
“They can contact the school, and schools can get in touch with the students and have the students communicate with parents through a regular phone at the school, just like we used to do when we were growing up, when cell phones weren’t around,” said Dr. Rodriguez.
The district clarified that students are allowed to have their phones on their person, they just have to be turned off or put away during instruction. They feel students will be more aware during drills and/or safety plans with devices put away.
“We want to make sure that our students are focused on responding appropriately to crises just as we train and drill throughout the year, and we want our teachers doing the same.”
The district acknowledged that it’s still too early to determine whether the new policy will have a significant effect on student test scores or overall well-being. However, teachers have already noticed one clear benefit. Students seem to be more focused.
And though too early to tell, Dr. Rodriguez and the district are hoping for some good changes to come in the future semesters.
“We want to see what all the benefits are from this change right? Whether it’s positive impact on students’ mental health, or whether it's changes in students’ concentration and focus in the classrooms. So, some of it might be quantitative and it may play out in some test scores and then some of it might just be benefits of the student’s overall well-being.”
You can read more into the State of South Carolina Department of Education’s cell phone policy here.