The Tamaqua Area School District is considering changing its policy on electronic devices, such as cellphones, during the school day.

Superintendent Ray Kinder on Tuesday presented some options for the school board to consider during his report.

School Board President Larry Witting was in favor of restricting all access, except for specific academic programs that use them, while other board members weren’t as eager to ban silent use of cellphones.

Students have been allowed to have cellphones and other devices since a policy shift in the early part of the pandemic in August 2020.

Middle and high school students have more freedom with the devices, whereas elementary students do not and must keep them in a backpack during the day, Kinder said last week.

The proposed changes mainly affect the middle and high school students, who are allowed to carry the devices and use them during lunch, study halls, passing classes and in class with supervision under the current policy.

Cellphones and other devices are not allowed in private areas, such as locker rooms, bathrooms, dressing rooms, nurses’ offices, main office or swimming pool areas.

The main shift under the administration’s proposed changes would restrict cellphone use during study halls and allow use during class only under supervision, according to the chart presented.

The change would also prohibit headphones and smartwatches, which aren’t addressed under the current policy, Kinder said.

Administrators reported no changes in behavior, or academics better or worse with the use of cellphones during the school day, he said.

The administration hopes to take back some academic time with restricting use during study halls, and Kinder had pointed out students are often using their phones at the end of classes, too.

Wittig quickly pointed out that some school districts don’t allow them at all, and didn’t think those districts were handicapped academically.

“Intuitively, you know with the socialization factor, or the lack thereof,” he said. “Cellphone use is not a good thing societally, because of the lack of one-on-one, face-to-face communication.

“I don’t see an upside,” Wittig said, suggesting that the district eliminate the cellphone use and err on the side of caution with screen time and distractions.

He pointed out that restricting devices is not punishing students, but helping them academically, reducing distractions and encouraging face-to-face, verbal communication.

Emergency situations

Board member Bryan Miller said as much as he doesn’t like it, we live in a connected world, and he, as a parent, has reached out to communicate with their kids during the school day about doctor’s appointments or being picked up after school.

Miller also pointed out that cellphones are a measure of safety in the school and classrooms, too.

“If something happened in the school, this is their immediate lifeline,” he said.

Wittig disagreed, especially in the case of an active shooter in the school.

“So, 2,200 kids are going to call their parents and there’s one road in and one road out,” Wittig said. “And 2,200 sets of parents are going to be here after the fact, by the way, because this thing happened in 10 seconds or 20 seconds?

“It’s a false sense of security,” Wittig said.

Miller countered, “Tell me if it was your child, you wouldn’t rush to this building.”

Wittig agreed, but said it also makes his point. Parents rushing to the school isn’t going to help, especially when emergency vehicles need to get in and help, he said.

Board Vice President Nick Boyle pointed out there is also false reporting with cellphones, especially in lower grades.

“Elementary, middle school kids text their parents something completely different,” he said. “Mom goes on social media and makes a post about it. And it’s always the last sentence, ‘And the school is not doing anything about it.”

The district has increased security measures in the schools with alarms, cameras and communications, Wittig said.

“We’re doing a lot,” he said, regarding school safety and doesn’t see how students having cellphones help. “To my knowledge, there has not been any reversal of a horrific acts because of cellphones.”

Kinder suggested the use of phone caddies in the classrooms, as a possible compromise. A few teachers use them now, and students place their devices inside the caddie when they enter the room, he said.

The district could see about their availability, and for those classes that use cellphones for academics, the phones or devices could be pulled out for that specific use, Kinder said.

Board member Dan Schoener pointed out that this would be another expense for the district, and asked if they could have students just put the phone on their desks face down.

Kinder said a phone out on a desk would trigger a Pavlovian response with kids seeing the phone and wondering what’s going on. Kinder said that they’re also trying to teach kids about using devices responsibly and appropriately, just like teaching them lessons behind the wheel of a car.

Witting pointed out that if students were truly turning them off in classrooms, that they wouldn’t be able to power them up and use them in the two minutes between classes either.

Assistant Superintendent Stephen Toth will be working on the policy for the next the board meeting in June.