NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — A bill to ban cell phone usage during school will soon be up for debate in Tennessee, again.
HB 2758 moved through the legislature in early 2024, but failed when members of the House Education Administration Committee were split in their vote.
The bill is sponsored by Republican Representative Rebecca Alexander out of Jonesborough. Representative Alexander said she plans to re-introduce the bill.
“Sometimes we throw a bill out there and we look at it and then it doesn’t pass, and we bring it back the next year and it passes,” said Alexander. “Sometimes it’s a matter of us educating everyone on why we need this bill and the importance of it.”
Alexander said teachers continue to share stories with her on the distracting realities of cellphones.
“I started having teachers say to me, ‘Wow, my students today were in class and I was speaking on something, and one of them was watching a movie on their cell phone’,” said Alexander. “In my district we actually had a member of our school board go and talk to a class, and while he was talking to the class, so many students were on their cell phone.”
A study from the Pew Research Center found 72% of high school teachers see cellphone distraction as a major problem.
Representative Alexander says she’s gotten feedback from superintendents across the state and because of that, she said the legislation will be very similar to what was previously on the table.
“I think that this will now be a bipartisan bill,” said Alexander.
A concern, still, is removing the instant connection between parents and students.
“I understand their right to want to have a connection to their kid, but their their concerns should be number one, that their students are learning,” said Alexander. “I think parents need to just let it go, trust that their schools are going to take good care of their kids, and want the best for their kids.
Other states including Virginia and Ohio have similar legislation in place.
In Tennessee, it would be up to each district to decide how they implement the policy. Warren County schools already have a policy in place requiring students to lock their phone in a pouch each day.
The company behind the pouch, Yondr, said they partner with thousands of schools across 27 countries and 83% saw an improvement in student engagement in the classroom and 74% saw an improvement in student behavior.