Photos courtesy Nahia Morgan
By Nahia Morgan, Staff Writer
9/19/25
ROCKLAND- Rockland High School is preparing for the looming strict phone policy to be set in place by the state.
On July 31, the Massachusetts State Senate passed a bill banning cell phones from all schools in Massachusetts, K-12, for the whole school day, including during lunch periods and recess periods.
It passed with an overwhelming 38-2 vote and will now be sent to the House for consideration.
If the bill passes the House, it will go to Governor Maura Healey, who has frequently stated that she supports a schoolwide cell phone ban. So most likely this policy will be put into effect for the 2026-2027 school year.
“This is not about demonizing technology. This is about creating boundaries that allow our students to learn, grow, and connect in healthier ways,” said Jack Lewis, who co-chairs the education committee in a statement to Boston.com. “It’s about giving our teachers their classrooms back. It’s about saying as a commonwealth, we value the mental health and attention of our young people enough to act.”
“School cell phone bans are needed for a number of reasons: to improve academic performance and social skills, address the mental health crisis, make schools safer, and to improve job satisfaction for educators,” Lewis said.
Some exemptions are available. Students with disabilities who have an individualized education plan (IEP) that specifies the need for a cell phone to manage their condition during the school day will be exempt from the ban. Similarly, students with a documented medical need for a cell phone or similar device will also be allowed to keep and use them. Finally, students who need to leave campus for educational purposes during the school day, or for a doctor's appointment or other medical reason will be permitted to bring their phones with them.
An overwhelming number of adults, 74%, agree with banning cell phones from middle schools and high schools. This figure is up from 68% from last fall.
In contrast to this, the two senators who voted no have something to say.
“I voted no because decisions about personal electronic device use belong at the local level. This one-size-fits-all mandate overrides the discretion of school districts, which are best equipped to decide what works for their students without state-imposed penalties,” Senator Kelly Dooner said in a statement to Boston.com
“Cellphones are instrumental in society and an outright cellphone ban in schools does not serve students well or appropriately teach students how and when to use phones maturely in an academic environment,” her fellow congressman, Fattman said in a statement to Boston.com.
“This legislation also creates a blanket policy for all schools rather than allowing the school districts to create policies based on their own community’s needs. Finally, this legislation fails to consider all facets of cellphone use in schools, such as families communicating during the school day, especially during a public safety or family emergency,” he also added.
What is Rockland High doing?
To prepare for the likely cell phone ban for the 2026-2027 school year, a good portion of teachers at Rockland High School have been requiring students to put their phones away either in a phone holder or bin at the start of class. Some students have met this with outrage, while others think it helps them focus better in class.
Student Voices
From Rockland High School, the new policies have generated mixed responses from students of all grades.
Freshman Favour Ndukwe said, “I didn’t mind [the policy] much because I don’t use my phone in class, and I kind of already knew it was going to happen.”
She says there weren’t many restrictions put in place at the middle school. You were allowed to have your cell phone on you, in your bag, or in your pocket, but if a teacher saw it, it would get taken away.
“I think what they’re doing now for this school, such as putting the phones away, is good. But in some schools, you have to put your phone in the yonder pouches or lock them up for the entire day, so that’s a bit too much and a bit unnecessary,” Ndukwe said.
But the difference in ages at Rockland High School is a huge jump. Should the seniors have fewer rules when it comes to phones? Or should freshmen have fewer rules since they’re younger?
“I think we definitely should be more lenient on seniors,” Ndukwe said.
When asked about the new cell phone ban on the horizon for Rockland, she said that she does not support it.
But what do the upperclassmen of the school think?
Senior Clara de Oliveira has been at Rockland High School since her freshman year, and the policies have changed a lot.
“During my freshman year, we could use our phones freely in classes unless a teacher was going through a lesson and giving homework. You could use phones in hallways and also during lunch, but since then the policies have become more strict, and now we have to put our phones in the bin,” de Oliveira said.
This year, seniors are saying goodbye to Rockland High School and preparing for college and their future. But how do the new cell phone policies affect that?
“A lot of stuff we do for college it requires your personal email that you usually have to access through your phone. So in classes where you have free time, if you don’t have access to your personal email on your Chromebook, it can be challenging to get ahead of college preparations,” de Oliveira said.
de Olivera understands the need for a phone policy but also believes that a total ban shouldn’t happen.
“I understand their point, and I understand why it can be important to encourage students to be less distracted in class, but I also do believe that a total ban shouldn’t happen. I think that students should be able to have their phones with them at school for safety reasons. In classrooms, a good approach for teachers to take is to give extra credit to students who put their phones away during class," she said.
The main reason phones are being taken away in schools is because of the focus problem.
“It depends on the class, but for the majority, yes, I do feel that not having my phone helps me focus in class. Not having it doesn’t make me feel tempted to scroll on Instagram or Tiktok,” de Oliveira said.
But again there’s that problem with the age differences.
“I think they should be a little more strict on the freshmen and underclassmen to allow them to really focus on their early high school years. But for seniors, on certain occasions, I do think we should be able to have our phones. Such as during lunch, to photograph memories and to also be able to communicate with each other,” de Oliveira said.
Teacher Reactions
English teacher Ms. Kristen Walsh has been teaching since 2008.
“Phones were definitely something that students had back then, but not as smart of phones, so flip phones, Blackberries and things where they didn’t want to check social media all the time. It was more for texting and phone calls. So it’s definitely gotten worse in terms of the amount of time people, including adults, spend on phones,” Walsh said.
Since she started implementing phone policies in her English classes, she says that there has been a massive change in focus, and participation.
She said, “I think there’s less rushing because they used to think they could have their phone when they were done and now that they know they can’t, they are taking their time, they are talking to each other, working in groups, paying attention and focusing and trying to do their best rather than rushing so that’s been nice.”
Teachers have some understanding of the students’ reliance on phone use in today’s culture and society.
Ms. Walsh said, “I understand why students want to have them on them at all times and as an adult I do most of the time as well, but I think that it was taking away from the desire to learn because they would rather be on their phones so if you take the distraction away, they’re more likely to get more out of school and their classes. I think that there’s plenty of time during the day for phone use, so it shouldn’t be while they’re in class.”
Ms. Walsh supports the phone ban, and said, “I think it’s a long time coming and a lot of schools in different areas have already put something in place. I know teachers who work in schools that have no phones who have said it has been a massive and positive change.”
In contrast to Ms. Walsh and her years of experience, Ms. Haley Ryan has recently begun her teaching career as a long-term substitute in the Science department.
“My first year was Covid. The first time I was ever in my classroom was 2019/2020. So I don’t have a lot of experience with phones before Covid, with technology, and how kids were. But afterwards it’s definitely a distraction,” she said.
In her classroom, students are not required to put their phones in a bin or phone holder at the start of class. They are allowed to have their phones in their bag, but not out in class.
Ms. Ryan supports a stricter cellphone policy in schools.
“I think it depends on how you go about it. I think it’s a lot better to start off strong at the beginning of the year with a very strict phone policy. I think it helps build community. Kids are more engaged in the class, they are more engaged with each other. I think it would be a lot harder to let phones go unchecked than try to come back from that on the third or fourth week of school. I think that could lead to a lot of conflict and hostility.”
But at the end of the day, Ms. Ryan does support the new cell phone ban.
She said, “I do support the ban. I think overall, we don’t really understand the impacts of technology on young minds. We don’t really understand the impacts of social media on young minds. I think it’s good to have a unified policy.”
The Future of Phones
Whether or not the bill passes, the role that phones play in school continues to be a hot topic. On the teacher side, the bill and new policies have a ton of support but on the student side, students want the bill, and new policies to be more lenient especially on seniors. But even with all the disagreement it is possible to find common ground.