The cellphone: A helpful or harmful school tool?

In today’s connected world, smartphones can be as familiar a sight as laptops and textbooks in schools, yet the devices pose a unique set of challenges within the classroom. 

Gov. Greg Gianforte has called for Montana superintendents and school boards to establish “cellphone-free” policies, aiming to reduce distractions and improve academic outcomes.  

Citing a 2023 report from Common Sense and the C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital, the Governor’s Office highlighted that 97% of 11- to 17-year-olds use cellphones during school hours, receiving over 50 notifications daily. The report also noted that policies on cellphone use are inconsistently enforced. 

This renewed focus aligns with the U.S. Surgeon General’s 2023 advisory on the harmful effects of social media use on children’s and adolescents' mental health, with social media platforms implementing features that foster extended interaction such as push notifications, autoplay and infinite scrolling. 

"Studies and data point to the urgent need to act,” Gianforte wrote in a letter to school leaders. 

"Given the gravity of the situation, I ask you, and all school districts throughout our state, to consider adopting policies that create ‘cell phone-free’ schools. Schools across the country that have enacted policies to make schools ‘cell phone-free’ have seen increased student engagement and improved academic outcomes.” 

Montana is not alone in seeking to limit cellphone use in schools. KFF Health News reports eight states have banned or restricted cellphones in schools, with another 12 introducing legislation. However, research on the effectiveness of such bans remains limited. 

A Pew Research Center survey indicates 68% of U.S. adults support bans during class time, but fewer, 36%, support bans for the full school day.  

Sara Bigelow, parent of a high schooler and middle schooler, would support banning cellphones during the full school day. Anecdotally, she said her high school-aged child texts throughout the school day but manages good grades, despite this she feels strongly about the distractions they pose. 

“Personally, I think they should be banned everywhere,” Bigelow said.  

Bigelow, who is also a counselor at Kalispell Middle School, has seen how cyberbullying, even done outside of school hours, spills over into the school week because it affects mental health. 

Fellow colleague and parent, Kalispell Middle School counselor Susan Sherman agreed that the negatives of having phones in schools outweigh any positives, both in agreement that they survived growing up without cellphones. 

“I know from having a high schooler what drama can be stirred up on social media,” Bigelow said. 

Support for banning cellphones during class drops to 45% among young adults ages 18 through 29, according to the Pew survey. Among this age group, support for a full-day ban drops to 18%. 

Flathead High School students David Moody and Vincent Lam believe in teaching responsible use rather than imposing a full ban. Moody said any tool can become a distraction if used irresponsibly, although he said, a phone can be more of an issue due to its accessibility.    

“I don't think it's necessarily unwise to give students the opportunity to learn now how to be responsible with their phones, as opposed to later, when they're in the workplace and all of a sudden they’re in trouble with a boss because they’re on their phone,” Moody said.     

“Although, you know, we come to school to learn and not be on our phones, there’s certainly a balance there. I can see the positives and the idea of preventing phones in schools,” he added.  

Flathead High School Principal Michele Paine saw merit in the students’ insight. 

“I know that devices are going to be a part of students’ lives probably forever, right? And if we don't try to help kids be responsible and aware of their use — I think that's part of our job, to help kids learn that there's a time and a place ... I don't think just a simple ban outright, of all phones at all times, really helps us teach kids that responsible use,” Paine said. 

Moody and Lam said cellphones have practical uses in some classes and they can quickly access Google classrooms.  

“I think it’s important for students to have their phones on them, at the very least, especially if there’s a school emergency or something like that, you know, to contact their parents or authorities,” Lam said. 

Paine said the topic arose during a meeting with other AA principals following the Sept. 4 shooting at Apalachee High School in Georgia where four people were killed. Kalispell Public Schools has programs to send out notifications to families through text, email and phone. Classrooms still have landlines and teachers are allowed to have cellphones on them in classrooms.   

“When kids have their phones, it's harder to respond quickly in the crisis because there's a lot of misinformation that gets spun around immediately between students, between students and parents ... which then means the people trying to deal with the crisis are having to deal with the misinformation as opposed to dealing with the real thing," Paine said.  

FLATHEAD AND Glacier High School have nearly identical cellphone policies. 

“Fifteen years ago, that was when we said absolutely no phones,” Paine said. “Now, phones are to be off and away during class time, but students can access devices between classes, before and after school, and during lunch.” 

The exception to the rule is if a teacher permits cellphone use for instructional purposes.  

Glacier High School Principal Brad Holloway said that while phones can be disruptive, eliminating them isn’t realistic, so the focus is on restricting use during class time. He said some teachers have created designated baskets or caddies to store phones during class.   

“Our whole staff really bought into this because I think everybody recognized that what we're asking is not unreasonable and it's for the right reasons. It's not a power struggle like it was a power struggle before. We know this is the right thing to do. We know it's better for you in terms of your learning, and that we trust that you can do the right thing,” Holloway said.    

Paine and Holloway were in agreement that a ban would place a bigger burden on teachers to police cellphone use, while the current policies provide flexibility.  

Kalispell Middle School, in contrast, implemented a cellphone-free policy since piloting the measure in 2020. Kalispell Middle School Principal Dallas Stuker said the policy curbed cellphone-related conflicts. 

Kalispell Middle School English teacher Dana Haring noted the policy has made managing classrooms easier. Haring is in her 29th year as a teacher. She said younger students need consistency and would struggle if a cellphone was allowed one day, but not the next, or by one teacher and not another. 

“I think something that we did here in Kalispell, at least the middle school, that was really smart, was that we never allowed students to have cellphones in the classroom carte blanche. It always had to be at the specific direction of the teacher, and that makes it easier that we're not taking something away from students that they're used to having,” she said.  

“I think the evidence is just too clear that they are too damaging to learning environments to allow in a learning environment,” she said. 

While Gianforte’s call for “cellphone-free schools” may provide districts with the backing to implement stricter policies, the debate remains around balancing academic needs and digital literacy with students’ mental health. 

Whether phones are banned or restricted, however, cyberbullying remains a significant issue with schools at times involving school resource officers to assist in getting posts taken down because social media platforms have their own policies and procedures. 

Paine said Flathead addresses bullying and harassment in the curriculum, yet it persists. 

“For me as principal, the increase in cyberbullying has just gotten out of hand, I think. And that's hard,” she said.    

“I've always said to kids, you're not going to like everybody in your classes, or in the school. I mean, you're just not, right? Or in your job when you're an adult. There's always going to be people you don't get along with. But you have to learn how to be civil and how to be appropriate. It's just more complicated on cellphones because kids can just be completely unchecked,” Paine said.   

Reporter Hilary Matheson may be reached at 758-4431 or hmatheson@dailyinterlake.com.