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Discovery Collegiate 

Policy Governing the use of Personal Electronic Devices 

on School Property

This policy applies to all schools within the NLSchools system so that all school communities have the same approach to support a positive environment for teaching and learning and will be published for all members of the school community. Students receive direction and instruction at all grade levels about appropriate behaviours during instructional time, techniques for active listening and learning, and how to avoid distractions during class time. At intermediate and senior grade levels, students may learn about how to foster positive mental health, and how to use technology responsibly. All aspects of the PED Policy and its enforcement will be under the best judgement of the school’s administrators.

*For the purposes of this policy, PEDS are defined as all personal electronic devices (PEDs). This includes cell phones, smart watches, music playing devices, ear buds/head phones, etc. 

This policy applies to NLSchools during instructional hours from when students enter the school property until they are dismissed from class at the end of the school day. This does not apply during recess and lunch breaks. Students in grades 7-12 are permitted to use PEDs in school during recess and lunch. This policy applies to all students who have not been approved for a documented exception.

Students in grades 7-12 are encouraged not to bring PEDs to school. Grades 7-12 students who bring a PED to school must switch it off or put it on airplane mode and turn off notifications; and must store it out of sight during instructional hours. PED’s cannot be stored on a student’s body (e.g. in a student’s clothing). Students in grades 7-12 are permitted to use their PEDs during recess and lunch. 

Guardians: Contacting Students during Instructional Hours

If there is a need to contact a student during the school day, please call the school office (709) 468 - 2323 or contact your child during breaks (recess 10:35-10:50 or lunch 11:50-12:30). Parents/guardians should contact the office in case of an emergency. Your child/children will be confidentially notified of the need to communicate with parents/guardians. Parents/guardians can expect to be contacted directly by school staff should their child/children be injured and/or require serious medical attention. 

Exceptions to the Policy

This policy provides exceptions to allow students to use PEDs for documented medical reasons or educational purposes only. All exceptions to be made within this policy are to be applied for and approved by the school’s administration prior to their use. All exceptions are to be documented and communicated to staff by administrators or other members of the staff entrusted to approve specific exceptions.

• For Medical Reasons, for example: glucose monitoring and hearing aid settings. 

• For Educational Purposes, for example: Proloquo2Go, Read&Write, or using assistive technologies, or others for students with Individualized Education Plans (IEPs). 

Exceptions Forms are available through Discovery Collegiate’s main office.

Individual students with documented and verified needs will work with the relevant officials (e.g., principal, vice principal, school counsellor, or instructional resource or classroom teacher) to develop and enact an appropriate exception plan. All authorized students and parents/guardians must sign a Personal Electronic Device Exception Agreement, which defines access, expectations of use, and penalties/consequences for improper use. A student with an exception agreement may use their PEDs as outlined in their Personal Electronic Device Exception Agreement. Students who are granted exceptions and who have signed a Personal Electronic Device Exception Agreement will be allowed to use their device as agreed. Improper use will mean that the student will have to follow the response protocol as outlined for all students.

Implementation and Violations 

This policy is effective January 6, 2025. Where a student contravenes this policy, teachers are required to check the Google-shared document to determine whether the student has previously contravened this policy. The first time a student contravenes this policy, the student will be asked to put away the PED; the teacher will send an email to the student’s parents/guardians and record this contravention in the Google-shared document. The second time a student contravenes this policy, the teacher will record this contravention in the Google-shared document, and the student will be sent to the administrator’s office to place the PED in a secure container. The administrator will contact home through phone call or send an email to the student’s parents/guardians, and the student may retrieve the PED at the end of the school day. Any additional student contraventions of this policy, the teacher will record this contravention in the Google-shared document, and the student will be sent to the administrator’s office to place the PED in a secure container. The administrator will send an email to the student’s parents/guardians and make arrangements with the parent/guardian for the return of the PED at the end of the school day. If students repetitively contravene this policy, the administrator may issue other progressive disciplinary actions.  Schools may use means other than Google-shared document to capture, track and share this information at the overall school level.

If a student repeatedly contravenes this policy, teachers and administrators may issue other progressive disciplinary actions than those outlined in the policy. 

Discovery Collegiate’s disciplinary actions will proceed as follows:

Strike 1- Verbal reminder given, incident is documented in Google-shared document and Review 360° and contact home is made by the teacher.

Strike 2- Student is sent to the main office, their personal device is confiscated for the day, contact is made with home. Incident is documented in Google-shared document and in Review 360°. 

Strike 3- Student is sent to the main office, their personal device is confiscated for the day, a detention is given by the administration and contact is made with home. Parent/guardian must meet with the administrators at school for the device to be returned. Incident is documented in Google-shared document and in Review 360°.

Strike 4- Student is sent to the office, their personal device will be confiscated for the day, 

contact is made with home and an in-school suspension is given by the administration. Parent/guardian must meet with the administrators at school for the device to be returned. Incident is documented in Google-shared document and in Review 360°.

Strike 5- Student is sent to the office, their personal device is confiscated for the day, 

contact is made with home and an out of school suspension is given by the administration. Parent/guardian must meet with the administrators at school for the device to be returned. Incident is documented in Google-shared document and in Review 360°. Any further instance of PED use during instructional time will invoke another suspension if within 30 days of the previous suspension. A student will be required to attend school for 30 days without incident to be cleared of prior incidents and to be held in good standing.

Please see Discovery Collegiate’s Extracurricular Contract for further guidance regarding disciplinary incidents and extracurricular involvement.

All aspects of the PED Policy and its enforcement will be under the best judgement of the school’s administrators.