Backed by bipartisan support, Texas House Bill 1481 may soon ban cell phone usage across schools. The bill, proposed by State Representative Caroline Fairly of Amarillo, will prohibit students from using personal wireless devices during “instructional time.” Schools will be required to provide a “secure, out-of sight” storage area for these devices.
HB 1481, among similarly proposed bills, comes amid growing concerns over the mental health impacts of cell phone and social media usage. Parents and educators have called for the removal of cell phones from classrooms as a growing body of research suggests that cell phone use can hurt classroom engagement. Texas lawmakers, citing declining test scores and shortened attention spans, are now responding.
Fairly, who is currently the youngest member in the Texas Legislature, drew on her personal experiences with cell phones in schools during the committee hearing. She voiced her hopes that the ban can improve mental health and academic performance.
“My generation is more anxious, depressed, less focused and more distracted than ever before,” Fairly said.
Several other states have enacted similar bans, and Fairly says that around 20 school districts in Texas already limit cell phone use. Policies range from having students keep their devices in their bags to implementing school-designated storage spaces. HB 1481 would leave districts on how to implement the ban.
Dr. Jon Taylor, the Department Chair of Political Science and Geography, points out that Republican dominance in the Texas Legislature and support from Governor Greg Abbott and Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick means that HB 1481 has a strong chance of being passed.
“Democrats, even Liberal Democrats [are] jumping onto this,” Taylor said. “[House Bill 1481] has enough support to get through — at least some sort of legislation will get through this session,”
As similar policies are passed across the U.S., Yondr, a company focused on creating “phone free spaces,” has contracted to sell schools more than $8 million worth of products in the past five years. Its “Yondr pouch” has faced public scrutiny recently, as schools have sought more direct methods in prohibiting cell phone use.
Taylor, who acknowledges that cell phones can “[interfere] with learning” and create “issues with bullying [and] distractions, is concerned about HB1481’s impact on students’ privacy.
“What kind of privacy protections are there for the actual owners of those phones?” Taylor said. “We seem to see a lot of overreach in education, particularly in K through 12. I’m worried about their civil liberties — even as [they are] minors — because those civil liberties are still protected under the Constitution.”
Anthropology professor Deborah Moon has had a no-technology policy in her classroom for the 21 years she has taught at UTSA, having students keep devices in their bags. While she acknowledges that the policy is “an outlier” among others, she notes that students respond positively by the end of the semester.
“[By] usually about week four, I have students telling me, ‘Thank you. I never knew that I could engage in [a class] this way because I’m usually distracted by my phone,’” Moon said. “My students are actively engaged in conversation. They’re participating, and it’s a really wonderful thing to watch because I see the evidence of their success by this policy.”
Many have pointed out that HB 1481 would create an unfunded mandate, forcing school districts to comply with new policy without being provided the necessary funds. Fairly said she has been working to add funding to the bill.
English
Spanish