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Yahoo
5 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Youngkin signs Virginia law limiting 'bell-to-bell' cellphone use in public schools
Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed a bill into law Friday limiting cellphone use for all Virginia public elementary, middle and high school students. Youngkin, who built his political career championing parents' rights in education, ceremoniously signed two versions of the bill, HB1961 and SB738, at the Carter G. Woodson Middle School in Hopewell, Virginia. Youngkin said it was a fitting location for a day filled with such "hope." "When we come together — elected officials, administrators, teachers, parents and all of you — we can move mountains, and we can change something that needs to be changed, and that is to find freedom, freedom from cellphones," said Youngkin, who was flanked by his wife, Virginia first lady Suzanne S. Youngkin; public school students; education advocates; and local politicians. "We come together in order to move a mountain," Youngkin said, as he highlighted the negative effect of cellphones in schools on mental illness, conduct in class, academic performance and interpersonal relationships. Teens Spend More Than A Quarter Of Their Time At School On Phones, New Study Finds The bill strictly limits the use of phones in classrooms to reduce distractions and disruptions, codifying Youngkin's executive order signed last year "to protect the health and safety of students in Virginia's K-12 public schools by issuing guidance on the establishment of cellphone-free education policies and procedures." Read On The Fox News App Dc Council Proposes Bill To Ban Cellphones In District's Public Schools "We are building on the foundation laid by Executive Order 33 to make Virginia the national leader in restoring focus, academic excellence in the classroom and restoring health and safety in our schools. This legislation ensures that every school division adopts a full bell-to-bell policy and removes cellphones from classrooms, creating a distraction-free learning environment," Youngkin said as he signed the bill into law. Research indicates using cellphones in the classroom can have a negative effect on students' grades, social skills, emotional development and mental health. In a 2024 Pew Research Center study, more than 70% of high school teachers said cellphones distracting students in the classroom is a major problem. "This wasn't just an issue. It's a crisis. And when we have a crisis, we have a unified call for action, and that's what this gathering is all about, this unified call for action," Youngkin said Friday. Hopewell City Public Schools adopted a "pouch system" in its secondary schools at the start of the 2022-2023 school year, which has been used as a case study and potential model for the Virginia Department of Education's cellphone-free education rollout. "I want to add my appreciation for Hopewell's leadership because it was your leadership that inspired the executive order that I wrote last summer," Youngkin said. The statewide legislation requires school boards to develop and public schools to enact policies to restrict student cellphone use during the school day. The law includes exceptions for students with individualized education plans, Section 504 plans or health conditions, so cellphones can be used when medically necessary. The law also prohibits schools from suspending, expelling or removing students from class for violating cellphone policies. Florida became the first state to pass a law regulating cellphone use in schools in 2023. More than half of all states now have similar laws in article source: Youngkin signs Virginia law limiting 'bell-to-bell' cellphone use in public schools
Yahoo
04-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Teens spend more than a quarter of their time at school on phones, new study finds
A new study shows that more than a quarter of high school-aged students' time spent on their smartphones occurs in school. It comes as state lawmakers across the country introduce and pass legislation aimed at cracking down on student cellphone usage in schools. The study, spearheaded by Seattle Children's Hospital, found that among the more than 115 eighth- through 12th-grade students that it tracked, 25% of them spent more than two hours on their phones during a typical six-and-a-half hour school day. The study found that the average time spent among all the students they tracked was roughly 1.5 hours, which contributed to 27% of their average daily use. The study's findings come just several days after the state of Colorado introduced House Bill 1135, which would require school districts in the state to adopt policies that limit the use of cellphones by students during school hours. If passed, Colorado would join 19 other states that have adopted some type of cellphone restrictions for students, according to Democratic state Rep. Meghan Lukens. Dc Council Proposes Bill To Ban Cell Phones In District's Public Schools "I'm not a big fan of government controlling people's lives, but in this context, I'm all for it," psychotherapist Thomas Kersting told Fox News Digital. Kersting is a former school counselor who has lectured for 16 years about the adolescent impact of increased screen time. He wrote a bestselling book called "Disconnected," which posited that increased screen time for kids is re-wiring their brains. "I started seeing an incredible influx of kids diagnosed with attention deficit disorder (ADHD) from when I was working as a high school counselor. It did not add up," Kersting said. "The chronic eight or nine hours a day of stimulation affects the executive functioning, executive functions of the brain, which is what you need to be able to concentrate, focus, retain, and all that stuff." Read On The Fox News App Kersting pointed out that schools and school districts are also taking the lead in implementing various ways to cut down on students using their cellphones during class time, but added that state and local legislation can have the power to push schools that may be afraid to act due to parental concerns. Could Smartphone Use Cause Hallucinations? "The phone has become the umbilical cord between parent and child," said Kersting. "So, the idea of a parent nowadays sending their kid to school is more terrifying and schools, I believe, are probably concerned about litigation, violation of rights and things of that nature." But while parents may be apprehensive, taking phones out of school can help improve students' test scores, attention spans and socialization, while reducing the need for disciplinary intervention, Kersting said. The study by Seattle Children's Hospital found that, excluding web browsers, the top five apps or categories used by school-aged students were messaging, Instagram, video streaming, audio apps and article source: Teens spend more than a quarter of their time at school on phones, new study finds
