Michigan bans cellphones in school as more states move to end classroom distractions

MichiganGov.GretchenWhitmerhassignedanewlawtobansmartphonesfrompublicschoolclassroomsstartingthisfall,joininganincreasingnumberofstates—includingCalifornia—thathavemovedtokeepthedevicesoutofinstructionaltime. “Weknowthatphonesimpedeastudent’sabilitytolearn,”Whitmersaidlastweek.“Theyarebyfarthemostdisruptivedistractioninourclassrooms…designedtokeepyouscrolling,andteachersstrugglingtokeeptheclassengagedwhilecompetingagainstsocialmedia.” Underthenewlaw,studentswillstillbeabletohavephoneswiththematschool,butsmartphoneswon’tbeallowedduringinstructionaltime.Studentscouldcarrybasicphones,anditwillbeuptoschoolofficialstodeterminehowrigidlytoenforcethepolicymovingforward. WhilemanyMichiganschoolshavealreadyadoptedtheirowncellphonepolicies,thenewlawwillcreatebaselineregulationsforallpublicschooldistricts,whereofficialscouldstillconsiderstricterrules. Studentswillstillbeabletoaccesstheirsmartphonesbet