NEVADA VIEWS: Nevada students deserve bell-to-bell phone-free schools

Nevada students began the school year with new restrictions on phone use during instructional time under Senate Bill 444, which requires districts to adopt policies limiting devices in the classroom. While the law is seen as a positive step, advocates argue students need phone-free hallways and lunchrooms as well.

Neighboring Utah and Oregon already prohibit device use for the entire school day, and a national report card shows 25 states have enacted similar bell-to-bell bans through legislation or executive orders. Supporters say removing phones during passing periods and lunch fosters in-person interaction and reduces the pull of social media.

Author Jonathan Haidt, writing in The Atlantic, noted that phones on lunch tables make real conversation difficult as students constantly check notifications. Research cited by advocates links phone use to anxiety, sleep disruption, and body image concerns, with apps designed to maximize engagement during school hours.

Teachers also back broader bans. A National Education Association poll found more than 8 in 10 educators nationwide support an all-day prohibition, saying it reduces time spent policing devices and allows more focus on instruction. Even with classroom bans, teachers report students counting down minutes until they can access phones in hallways.

Safety experts add that bell-to-bell policies limit cyberbullying and the planning of altercations. The National Association of School Resource Officers warns that during emergencies, phones can distract students, spread unverified information, hinder communications, and even assist assailants through sounds and light.

Sources: Las Vegas Review-Journal