Los Angeles School Board to Ban Student Cell Phone Use During School Day, But How?
Los Angeles School Board to Ban Student Cell Phone Use During School Day, But How?
로스앤젤레스 교육위원회, 학교 학생들의 휴대폰 사용 금지 예정...시행 방법은?
BACKGROUND
로스앤젤레스 통합 교육구(LAUSD)는 디지털 기기가 학습 환경에 미치는 영향에 대하여 고민하고 있는 교육 기관이 증가하는 추세를 반영하여 교내에서 학생들의 휴대폰 사용 금지를 시행하기로 결정했다. 이 결정은 주의 산만, 사이버 괴롭힘, 학업 집중 방해 가능성 등 교실에서 스마트폰의 역할에 대한 미국 전역의 우려 속에서 나온 조치이며, 수업 시간 중 휴대폰 사용을 줄이는 것이 교육적으로 어떤 이점이 있는지에 대한 로스앤젤레스 통합 교육구 이사회 내부의 심의에 따른 것이다.
휴대폰 사용 제한을 지지하는 측은 휴대폰 사용을 제한하면 학생 참여도가 향상되고, 수업 방해가 최소화되며, 보다 유익한 학습 분위기가 조성될 수 있다고 주장하고 있다. 그러나 로스앤젤레스 통합 교육구처럼 규모가 크고 다양한 학군에서는 여러가지 문제와 시행의 실용성에 대한 우려를 제기하기도 한다. 학교가 여러 캠퍼스에 모니터링을 일관되게 시행하면서, 의료 또는 긴급 상황 등에 대해서는 예외를 두고, 학생과 학부모에게는 새 정책에 대해 교육하는 일련의 이러한 방법들을 어떻게 해결해 나갈 것인지에 대한 의문이 계속되고 있는 것이다.
이번 결정은 학업 성취도와 학생의 복지를 우선시하는 안전하고 집중력 있는 학습 환경을 조성하기 위한 교육구의 노력을 강조하고 있다. 학생, 학부모, 교사, 관리자를 포함한 다양한 이해관계자들이 모여 우려 사항을 해결하고 효과적인 정책 시행을 위해 협력해야 한다.
NEWS
Students in the nation’s second-largest school district will no longer be able to use cell phones during the school day after the Los Angeles Unified School District’s board voted 5-2 in favor of the ban Tuesday.
The move highlights a frustration shared by educators across the country. In the United States, 72% of high school teachers said cell phone distraction “is a major problem in the classroom,” according to a report last week by the Pew Research Center.
The Los Angeles ban, which will take effect by the spring 2025 semester, goes beyond the school district’s existing policy, which bans students from using cell phones during class instruction and limits social media use at school to “educational purposes.”
That policy took effect in 2011. Since then, smartphone use has exploded – both inside and outside the classroom. And students’ addiction to their phones has hurt their socialization, their mental health and their academic success, board member Nick Melvoin said.
“Our students are glued to their cell phones – not unlike adults,” said Melvoin, a sponsor of the new ban.
“They’re surreptitiously scrolling in school, in class time. They have their head in their hands walking down the hallways. They’re not talking to each other or playing at lunch or recess because they have their AirPods in.”
Research suggests “excessive cell phone use impacts adolescents mental health and well-being and is associated with increased stress, anxiety, depression, sleep issues, feelings of aggression, and suicidal thoughts,” board members supporting the ban wrote.
In addition, “Research indicates that limiting cell phone usage and social media access during the school day increases academic performance and has positive effects on student mental health,” the proponents said.
Questions remain before the ban takes effect
But even board members who voted for the cell phone ban expressed concerns and the need for more answers.
Among the concerns: how students would be able to communicate with parents in the event of an emergency, such as a mass shooting.
“I think in emergencies and with parent communication, this is definitely where a lot of parents have expressed their concerns to me,” Melvoin said.
“I think it’s such a tragic sign of the times, that that is what we initially think of. And we all need to do better in this country when it comes to gun violence prevention and keeping our students safe.”
The school board intends to seek input from students, parents, staff and experts on the best ways to implement the ban in all LAUSD schools by the spring semester of the 2024-25 school year.
Board member Rocio Rivas said “there are strong arguments on both sides” of the debate. As a mother, Rivas said she was relieved to hear from her son after his school went on lockdown. As a board member who supported the cell phone ban, Rivas said the school district must find ways to make sure parents can be adequately informed in case of an emergency.
Failing to notify parents could lead to unintended consequences, she said.
“If there’s an emergency – parents, if they cannot reach you on the phone – they’re going to be right there at the school,” Rivas said. And that could put “themselves in danger” or create other problems.
Board members also amended the proposed ban to consider the needs of students who are not fluent in English and might need access to a smartphone if that’s the only way they can get adequate translations.
Melvoin said the ban could be implemented in various ways. For example, some schools could ban students’ cell phones from even entering the school, while other schools might require cell phones to be stored in lockers or magnetic pouches.
“There will be differences between schools,” LAUSD School Board President Jackie Goldberg said.
“But the idea is very simple: If you bring your phone to school at all, you park it at the beginning,” she said. “You’ll put it in a locker or a pouch … and you’ll pick it up on your way home.”
The school board has 120 days to update the district’s existing cell phone policy. After the policy has been updated, it will be presented to the public at a future board meeting, Melvoin’s communication director Ally Salvaria said.
More states clamp down on students’ cell phones at school
California’s state legislature passed a law in 2019 allowing – but not requiring – school districts to limit student smartphone use at school.
A new bill making its way through the state legislature would require limiting or banning cell phone use by students in the public schools statewide by July 1, 2026, according to the most recent version of the bill.
Both of the California measures are referenced in the LAUSD proposal.
Supporters of LAUSD’s ban cited Oklahoma, Kansas, Vermont, Ohio, Louisiana and Pennsylvania as states that have introduced similar legislation.
Board members also noted Florida has blocked access to social media on school district Wi-Fi.
While the LAUSD vote happened at a regularly scheduled board meeting, it coincidently followed an topical essay by US Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy.
The op-ed, published Monday in The New York Times, called for warning labels on social media apps based on what’s known about the harm they pose to adolescents.