Latest news with #Bill158
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Governor supports new bill banning student cellphone use in Ohio schools
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine gives the State of the State address in the Ohio House chambers at the Ohio Statehouse on Wednesday, March 12, 2025 in Columbus, Ohio. (Pool photo by Samantha Madar, Columbus Dispatch.) Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine is throwing his support behind a new bill that would require schools to create a policy banning students from using cellphones during the school day. State Sen. Jane Timken, R-Jackson Township, recently introduced Ohio Senate Bill 158, which would ban cellphones in schools. The bill had sponsor testimony Tuesday in the Ohio Senate Education Committee. 'We need to be sure that our classrooms, frankly, are now cellphone free,' DeWine said. 'We all know that screen time is very, very addictive. Just having a phone nearby means students are receiving constant notifications all day long.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Ohio law currently requires all districts to have a policy for student cellphone use in schools by July 1. Some schools already ban cellphone use, while other schools restrict cellphone use to only certain times of the day. Timken's bill would take the law a step forward by outright banning the use of cellphones. 'This legislation is a common sense approach to unplug our children from the constant distractions that they have in the classroom,' Timken said. 'It will reduce those distractions and allow instructors to facilitate the building of interpersonal relationships that are so vital to human development by eliminating cellphone use in our classrooms.' A 2024 Pew Research study found that 72% of U.S. high school teachers say cellphone distraction is a major problem in classrooms. Students receive nearly 200 alerts per day on their cellphones, according to Statista. 'Those notifications make it nearly impossible for students to focus and to learn,' DeWine said. He said he has heard positive things from parents, superintendents, principals, and teachers in districts where they have already banned cellphones during the school day. 'Their kids are focused in the classroom, the lunch room is noisy,' he said. 'Once again, kids are actually talking to each other. The kids are actually talking instead of burying their heads and their phones. Grades are better. Socialization is improving and becoming more positive. The number of students being disciplined is down. … The result has been, I think, overwhelmingly indicating that our children in Ohio are better off with no cellphones during the day.' Timken said the hope is to pass the bill and potentially add it as an amendment to the budget. The Ohio House is expected to vote on the two-year budget Wednesday, sending it over to the Ohio Senate. Under S.B. 158, school districts would have to ban cellphone use by Sept. 1. One objection to banning cellphone use is a concern that students won't be able to reach their parents during an active shooter situation, but Dublin City School District Superintendent John Marschhausen said that would only slow students down from escaping danger. 'If students are given directions and where to go, them looking down at their phones, it only slows the process as to what we're trying to do, what we've practiced when it comes to evacuating, when it comes to lockdown, when it comes to shelter in place,' he said. At least 23 states have laws or policies that ban or limit students' cellphone use in schools, according to Education Week. Follow Capital Journal Reporter Megan Henry on Bluesky. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ohio Gov. DeWine addresses proposed bill to ban cell phones in schools
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine will speak in a Tuesday morning press conference to offer support of a bill that would ban cellphones in schools throughout the state. DeWine will host the press conference at the Ohio Statehouse, where he will be joined by State Senators Jane Timken (R-Jackson County) and Andrew Brenner (R-Delaware), former Second Lady of Ohio Tina Husted, and Dr. John Marschhuasen, Dublin City School District Superintendent. You can watch the press conference live in the video player above. 'In last year's State of the State, I talked about the need to take action in this area,' Gov. DeWine said. 'We need to be sure that our classrooms are now cellphone free.' Columbus man's monthly payment increases 500% in federal freeze confusion 'Studies consistently show that access to cellphones during school hours negatively impact student learning and academic performance,' DeWine said. 'Furthermore, these phones can be incredibly harmful to the students mental and emotional health. They expose our kids to things like cyberbullying, sextortion (and) both of these factors increase the risk of suicide among our children.' It is Timken's legislation, Senate Bill 158 calls for the banning of phones during the school day in Ohio, while focusing on enhanced student engagement and safety by prohibiting the use of cellphones. The bill would also introduce disciplinary measures for students who violate the ban. 'This legislation is a commonsense approach to unplug our children, from the constant distraction that they have in the classroom,' said Timken, who noted that on average a child can receive nearly 200 notifications per day. It is expected the bill, which Timken said will include a few exceptions when it comes to facilitating learning, will be presented in Senate's Education Committee and it is believed the standalone bill will move through the Ohio legislature. sb158_00_INDownload One year ago, DeWine called for a new law on banning phones. House Bill 485 called for phones to be banned in schools, except for an emergency, medical situation, or instructional purposes, but he received pushback for its sweeping guidelines. The bill uses similar language in DeWine's executive budget proposal in which he introduced the banning of phones in schools. A new Ohio law was enacted in 2024 that required school districts to implement policies to address the use of phones in schools, and many districts followed with banning their use. Many districts have already noted improvement in student engagement, attendance, grades, socialization, and communication, the Governor's office said. Superintendent Marschhuasen also noted that phones will not be allocated phones to students during emergencies, such as an active shooter. 'I understand there's fear, and our goal will be to get students safely back to parents as soon as possible, but individual student having a cellphone isn't part of any of those plans,' he said. Organization offering 'bounty' for removal of invasive trees in central Ohio When asked why, Marschhuasen quickly noted, 'Because it clogs and slows the process. In any situation if students are given directions on where to go, them looking at their phones, it only slows what we're trying to do, what we've practiced when it comes to evacuating, when it comes to lockdown, when it comes to shelter in place. Whatever those plans are, students need to be paying attention.' At the news conference, Husted discussed strategies parents can use to be more aware of what their children are doing on their phones, including having regular and open conversations with their children about the dangers they may face online so they know what to do and who to turn to if they feel unsafe. She has previously supported Braden's Law, signed by DeWine in January, which makes sexual extortion a felony offense in Ohio. That law is slated to go into effect Wednesday. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
