- Lynbrook’s phone restriction policy will go into effect on the first day of the 2025-26 school year.
- Phones must be shut off during instruction time, including tutorials.
- More information will be coming from FUHSD over the summer.
In accordance with the Phone-Free School Act passed by California Governor Gavin Newsom in September 2024, FUHSD will implement a new policy banning student cell phone use during instructional periods starting in the 2025-26 school year. Teachers and administrators across the district will work together to coordinate procedures for enforcing this policy, aiming to cultivate classroom focus and social engagement across California.
“We as a staff have to figure out what we want to do,” Executive Assistant Principal Calvin Wong said. “This is one of those things where you need all teachers to be on board. You really want everybody to have a voice, so you have to discuss it as a whole set.”
FUHSD’s new policy requires students to turn off their device during instructional time including tutorials and passing periods, with access only permitted during brunch and lunch. The rule exempts special circumstances, such as for medical reasons and campus emergencies, or when the materials accessed through their phones are part of class educational content.
As of May, how the phone ban will be enforced remains undecided. Some teachers have already implemented “phone jails,” hanging pockets that hold student phones during class to prevent students from accessing their device. Some teachers employ other policies in which participation points are deducted for phone use during class. The PTSA is currently assisting with funds to provide all teachers who requested them “phone jails” for their classrooms.
“I’ve experienced using a phone jail, where teachers make us put our phones in small pockets at the corner of the classroom,” junior Juno Hong said. “Honestly, it doesn’t work because a lot of people use burner phones and people just do whatever they do on their phones on their laptop. I think it’s not really effective.”
Since students use their phones for a variety of purposes in class, many have mixed feelings about the phone ban, with some indifferent and others against the policy. For some students, phones act as a source of portable entertainment. For others, their phones serve as an educational tool like their computers.
“Next year, I think I’m going to tell students in every class period you have to trade in your phone for a calculator,” science teacher Connie Leung said.
Lynbrook administrators anticipate that the policy might be challenging for students and teachers to get used to at the start of the year, but hope that all parties will adapt to improve student engagement on campus.
“I think a lot of students will be disappointed, but it will be beneficial in the long run,” junior Lisa Jing said. “It’ll take a long time for us students to adjust, though”
The details of the ban are still taking shape as the FUHSD administration refines the policy. The district plans to release more information over the summer, and staff at each FUHSD school will be involved in finalizing the policy before it goes into effect on Aug. 18. Since each classroom has a variety of students with different needs, staff input will be used to interpret the policy to best serve all students in FUHSD.
