High school students are petitioning against schools in several states across the U.S. as cellphone bans come into effect. Thousands in Florida, Louisiana and Nevada have signed such petitions, stating that they want access to their cellphones during school hours.
Broward County Schools in Miami, Florida, recently implemented new restrictions for student cellphone use. The new restrictions require students to store their phones throughout the day, including lunch hour, in airplane mode. Headphones are also barred from being worn by students during school hours.
Over 18,000 students and parents have already signed a petition in which they ask for a meeting to discuss these new regulations and explore adjustments to the policy.
Elsewhere, one student started a petition aimed at pushing schools to impart guidelines on responsible cellphone use, rather than outright bans. Kaytlin Villescas at Prairieville High School in Louisiana says she and her peers should be allowed access to their devices, which she argues are not just for communication, but are valuable tools in academic pursuits.
This petition has already garnered over 10,000 signatures, and Villescas says she also brought her concerns to Gov. Jeff Landry, R-La., who has not yet replied. With the lack of a response, Villescas said she will not be removing the petition until some change for the students occurs.
A third set of students have also joined with a similar petition in Las Vegas, Nevada. More than 25,000 people have signed a petition there as the Clark County School District requires students in grades 6-12 to put their phones in signal-blocking pouches when they arrive at school each day.
The pouches keep a phone signal from reaching the device, and students will be instructed on where to keep their pouches, potentially on the student’s desk or a designated area within a classroom. The pouch will not lock, and keep devices accessible in case of an emergency.
The district said the effort “is to ensure a distraction-free and safe learning environment.” Devices such as laptops, cellphones, and tablets are still permitted for use during lunch periods, school activities, bus transportation and classroom periods with the approval of the school principal.
The petition in Nevada says the Clark County School Board should focus its attention on “more important issues,” such as beefing up funding for school lunches, teachers’ salaries and security for bullying and harassment.
So far, none of the schools have changed their policies due to the signed petitions.
