ARLINGTON, Va. — Cellphones will officially be banned all day in Arlington high schools. The school board approved a full day ban supported by parents Dec. 12.
The J-30 Cell Phone Policy requires all students to put their phones away for the duration of the school day, otherwise known as a bell-to-bell ban. The restrictions will apply to cellphones and other personal electronic communications devices and will be in effect from the time students get to school through the last bell of the day and also for school-sponsored field trips, excluding overnight trips.
But there is one exception to the full day ban: high school principals will be required to designate a location and non-instructional time in the day where and when students will be allowed to use phones briefly.
The restrictions will not apply to school buses, bus stops or school grounds after the final bell for the day — though after school activities run by the public school system may restrict cell phone use as they deem necessary.
Previously, high school students were required to have their phones away only during class and could use them between classes and during lunch. That was a part of rules approved a few months ago by Arlington Public Schools. It also prohibited elementary and middle school students from using their phones for the entire day, including keeping them silent and storing them away.
Four APS secondary schools are also part of a pilot program that uses storage to lock phones away.
Arlington Parents for Education and the Arlington Education Association advocated for an "Away for the Day" policy for high school students. In a joint letter, the two organizations wrote that "the benefits far outweigh any costs."