Cell phone ban in schools

[Anonymous]

Ok, how do we get this done for MCPS??

https://www.politico.com/news/2024/06/26/new-york-city-is-set-to-announce-a-cell-phone-ban-00165202

[Anonymous]

Didn't the new super get a cell phone ban in his old district?

[Anonymous]

MCPS will dig in its heels until it is the last school district left without a cell phone ban.
We are never at the forefront of anything.
The MCPS parents freak out about any little change and MCPS is scared of the parents

[Anonymous]

On the surface parents want it...but they also really want to be able to reach their kids during the day.

[Anonymous]

God I hope so. It caused so many issues with my freshman last year.

Next year I am going to make it clear that if you have a cell phone/airpods in front of you it will reduce any extra benefits from me. No extended deadlines, no open note. tests, no extra time to finish up assignments the next day. A phone out during an exam will result in a zero. I am done dealing with kids playing games, messaging friends all class, watching videos etc. and then claiming they need more time after doing very crappy incomplete work that doesn’t get submitted.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:On the surface parents want it...but they also really want to be able to reach their kids during the day.

Not all of us. The risks of frequent cell phone use in schools are far higher than those of not being able to reach my kids at school. What even is the risk of the latter? In case of some emergency?

So, yeah - how do we get this done in MCPS?

[Anonymous]

We have new leadership - this is an opportunity. And now there is precedent in other districts. Should MCCPTA take it up? How else can we organize?

[Anonymous]

Start at your school. Parents pushed for it at our MCPS middle school and they implemented it at the beginning of last year. My understanding is that each school can make that determination.

[Anonymous]

You have to be in private school to get a cell phone ban.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:God I hope so. It caused so many issues with my freshman last year.

Next year I am going to make it clear that if you have a cell phone/airpods in front of you it will reduce any extra benefits from me. No extended deadlines, no open note. tests, no extra time to finish up assignments the next day. A phone out during an exam will result in a zero. I am done dealing with kids playing games, messaging friends all class, watching videos etc. and then claiming they need more time after doing very crappy incomplete work that doesn’t get submitted.

I’ll support whatever punishment you dole out. Put it in the syllabus and have students and parents sign it in the first day of class. No misunderstandings about what happens if you violate the rules.

—parent of Soph

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:On the surface parents want it...but they also really want to be able to reach their kids during the day.

Not all of us. The risks of frequent cell phone use in schools are far higher than those of not being able to reach my kids at school. What even is the risk of the latter? In case of some emergency?

So, yeah - how do we get this done in MCPS?

What exactly does being able to get in touch with your kid during an emergency do? Let’s pretend there’s an earthquake. You can’t go get your kid. The phone lines need to be available for true emergency personnel. No one really knows anything and what is true at one moment might not be true in the next. Or if g-d forbid there is a shooting. You can’t go get your kid. Your kid needs to be paying attention to the adult in the room not responding to your texts or calls.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:On the surface parents want it...but they also really want to be able to reach their kids during the day.

+1 Especially with the lockdown incidents, it is necessary to have communication

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You have to be in private school to get a cell phone ban.

Not true. It's up to the school to implement it in MCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ok, how do we get this done for MCPS??

https://www.politico.com/news/2024/06/26/new-york-city-is-set-to-announce-a-cell-phone-ban-00165202

Just say no

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:On the surface parents want it...but they also really want to be able to reach their kids during the day.

Not all of us. The risks of frequent cell phone use in schools are far higher than those of not being able to reach my kids at school. What even is the risk of the latter? In case of some emergency?

So, yeah - how do we get this done in MCPS?

What exactly does being able to get in touch with your kid during an emergency do? Let’s pretend there’s an earthquake. You can’t go get your kid. The phone lines need to be available for true emergency personnel. No one really knows anything and what is true at one moment might not be true in the next. Or if g-d forbid there is a shooting. You can’t go get your kid. Your kid needs to be paying attention to the adult in the room not responding to your texts or calls.

Now that you've covered earthquakes as opposed to actual emergency scenarios that occur in our schools, what about wildfires?