A student uses their cell phone after unlocking the pouch that secures it from use during the school day at Bayside Academy on Aug. 16, 2024, in San Mateo.
Credit: Lea Suzuki/San Francisco Chronicle via AP
California State legislators passed a bill Wednesday requiring school districts to ban or restrict student smartphone use on campuses during school hours.
Assembly Bill 3216, renamed the Phone-Free School Act, requires that every school district, charter school and county Office of Education develop a policy limiting the use of smartphones by July 1, 2026.
“Extended studies have demonstrated that the use of smartphones in classrooms can detract from students’ academic performances while contributing to higher rates of academic dishonesty and cyberbullying,” said the authors’ statement. “In consideration of California’s deficiency when it comes to academic performance, as compared to other states, it…
