Cell phones in the Wellesley schools—an issue that cries out for stronger policies

Cell phone use in public schools around the country has been a hot-button issue for years. Yet only recently have local districts started to update vague rules to address the distraction issue that devices bring into school buildings.

Newton Public Schools, after scoring a $25k grant from the state, rolled out policies, programs, and practices this school year to address the use of electronic devices. Updates to the policy now include barring K-8 students from using cellphones, smart watches and other personal devices at school. At the high school level, students are allowed to use them for educational purposes with a teacher’s permission.

Wellesley Public Schools, looking to make updates of its own, is assembling a Cell Phone Working Group Committee made up of students, school staff, and parents/caregivers. Members will assess current practices around the use of cell phones and other smart devices in school.

Currently at WHS and WMS, cell phones must be silenced, stored and out of sight during the school day.

An out of sight, out of mind rule sounds good enough, right? So why bother with all this bothersome committee work?

The US Surgeon General’s new advisory last spring that urged educators and families to take immediate action on limiting kids’ social media use is hard to ignore. When it comes to kids, cell phone use equals social media use, which exposes them to harmful content ranging from violent and sexual content, to bullying and harassment. Referencing the national mental health crisis among young people, the advisory said recent research shows “…up to 95% of young people ages 13-17 report using a social media platform.” More than a third say they use social media “almost constantly.”

The issue of cell phone use and social media exposure is most definitely on the radar of the Massachusetts Department of Secondary Education. DESE last year handed out grants to 76 districts besides Newton to study the issue and implement changes. DESE appears to be gathering evidence in consideration of next steps.

Student cell phone use today reminds me of student cigarette use back in the 1970s and 80s. Back then, it wasn’t uncommon for high schools to set aside an outdoor smoking area for the use of kids who had permission from their parents. When the 1988 Surgeon General’s report concluded cigarettes were addictive, it was bye-bye smoking courtyards. Any district that would allow student use of an addictive substance on school grounds would be setting itself up for a lawsuit.

You see where I’m going with this, right? DESE has cited the growing body of evidence that links cell phone/social media use to negative impacts on academic, social-emotional and mental health outcomes. Some studies are suggesting that cell phones and social media use are addictive. Plenty of people have openly declared themselves addicts.

If cell phones and social media are addictive, then wouldn’t any school system that allows them on campus be actively working against student health and wellness in direct opposition to their stated goals? Wellesley High’s mission statement is to “Create positive learning experiences, encourage responsibility and integrity, and help students contribute to the world.”

An argument can be made that cell phones and social media use during the school day actively work against everything the school says it’s trying to help students achieve.

U.S. Surgeon General already warns that social media is as harmful to youth as smoking or alcohol, advocating for . Those waiting for overwhelming proof of causality can at least listen to educators in the trenches. Teachers say kids are distracted by their cell phones. Therefore, they conclude, teaching and learning are adversely affected. Anecdotal evidence is a powerful thing.

Wellesley does need stronger policies around cell phone use in the schools. A Cell Phone Working Group Committee may not sound cool. Policy work smacks of bureaucracy and rules, resulting in rigidity and a lack of faith that our kids will do the right thing, unforced. There’s nothing bohemian, or romantic, or laid-back about a Working Group Committee.

But something feels right and profound about the adults getting together with the kids and hashing this thing out in an organized fashion. A Cell Phone Working Group Committee is going to harness a lot of brainpower in one room, all in the service of safeguarding the brainpower of our most vulnerable population.

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The WHS Child Lab is now accepting applications for the 2025-2026 school year. Children who will be three years old or four years old by September 1, 2025 are eligible to apply. Please contact Heidi Marquedant at marquedanth@wellesleyps.org for an application. All applications are due by October 31.

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