Most kids bring their phones to school to get a hold of friends and family and check their social media. Phones can be beneficial and can be used in case a situation happens at school, but now at the end of 2024, Ohio is establishing a phone law where all phones cannot be used unless it’s for education purposes or during the lunch period. The phone law should “seek to address the distractions that devices can cause and the negative impact that these distractions have on educational outcomes, peer relationships, and mental health. Schools must adopt cell phone policies no later than July 2025, before the 2025-2026 school year.” 

To start, cell phones impact many students' lives, and they have cellular devices to keep in contact with family members and friends in case of emergency. Over the years, school shooting rates have gone up tremendously. For example, CNN says “There have been at least 58 school shootings in the United States so far this year, as of October 15. Fourteen were on college campuses, and 44 were on K-12 school grounds. The incidents left 28 people dead and at least 72 other victims injured.” Since school shootings keep happening, any school can be the next for a school shooting. If an event happens and children don’t have their phones, they won’t be able to contact their parents or 911. This is essential to know that their kids are safe and they can contact their parents quickly if there's a situation. Phones are also personal property that they or their parents bought, and they should be able to use something that’s theirs and should not have to put their belongings in a pouch.

Although parents and kids feel safer to have phones with them, it’s understandable why phones are required to not be out during classes. Phones can be used as a distraction and make students get off track and not focus on their classwork. The rules of having phones in school have been abused more each year, and it’s the problem that the governor is making the issue a law. According to Doug Most from Boston University, he said, “When kids are in school, leave them alone. Think about what that phone is meant for. When you gave them a phone, you said it’s in case of an emergency or if you need to be picked up in a different place.” This is an example to show that phones should only be used to contact parents and nothing else and that students do not need to have phones on them 24/7. 

A possible solution to the phone law for Ohio schools is that students should be able to have their personal belongings in their bag if it isn’t a distraction, but if it gets to the point where it’s distracting a student, then a teacher can take the phone away because it’s disrupting their learning. Overall, children should be allowed to have their phones for research purposes or for their safety.

by: Erin Snyder