(WTAQ-WLUK) — Legislation that would require K-12 public school boards in Wisconsin to adopt policies prohibiting the use of cell phones and other personal electronic devices during class is moving forward in the legislature.
State Rep. Joel Kitchens, a Republican from Sturgeon Bay, authored the bill. He says it will help teachers “get the undivided attention of their students.”
Kitchens believes cell phone use in classrooms is harmful to the education and mental health of students. His bill aims to eliminate the pressures of social media and the distraction that phones and other devices pose in schools.
“Technology is not going away, but we must teach young people to use it responsibly. Part of that is putting it aside when there is work to do,” Kitchens said in a news release.
Under the legislation, individual school districts would write their own policies banning cell phones during class time and decide how to enforce that ban. There would be exemptions for the monitoring of medical conditions and for emergency situations.
Democrats, like Rep. Lee Snodgrass of Appleton, question why the legislature should get involved when many school districts already have cell phone policies in place.
“My big problem with bills like this is it seems to be overreach. We should trust those publicly elected school boards to answer to those students and their families and the district, and make these policies as they see fit,” Snodgrass said.
According to Pew Research Center data from 2023, 72% of high school teachers who participated in a survey said students being distracted by cell phones was a major problem.
At least eight states have enacted similar cell phone bans in schools over the last two years.
Following its approval in the Assembly, the bill now heads to the State Senate for further consideration.
