The Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education on Tuesday voted to ban cellphone use during the school day.
The new rule will take effect in January 2025, though the Los Angeles Times notes the details still need to be “approved in a future meeting by the Board of Education.”
By prohibiting cell phone use all day — including during lunch and breaks — board members expressed hope that students would learn better interpersonal communication skills and be less prone to distress from social media and cyberbullying.
“Our students are glued to their cellphones, not unlike adults,” Board Member Nick Melvoin, who pushed for the rule, told the Times. “They’re surreptitiously scrolling in school, in class time, or have their head in their hands, walking down the hallways. They’re not talking to each other or playing at lunch or recess because they have their AirPods in.”
How the devices will be limited — perhaps by the use of cellphone lockers or pouches — remains to be worked out, as do possible carveouts for students who use the devices for homework or translating English as non-native speakers.