Starting Tuesday, students in the Los Angeles Unified School District will be banned from using cell phones on campus.
The ban is aimed at improving the educational environment by limiting the use of cell phones and social media during school hours.
“It is well known that based on medical research that the levels of anxiety and young people’s addiction to cellular phones,” said LAUSD superintendent Alberto Carvalho.
Carvalho said about 50 percent of schools are using the honor system, allowing students to keep cellphones and smart devices with them and trusting they will not use them during school hours.
Other schools are taking a different approach.
“Fifty percent of our schools obtained pouches that magnetically seal the phone during the day. The phone is in the possession of the student but inside our guarded pouch,” said Carvalho.
Carvalho said the ban aims to improve the educational environment by limiting distractions, boosting attention in the classroom and decreasing dependence on devices.
“Let’s give this a chance. Let’s restore back to kids their childhood. Let’s remove this pervasive addiction to not only the phones but to social media entities that create an environment of addiction to students,” said Carvalho.
The Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education passed the proposal in a 5-2 vote in June 2024.
The policy does allow for some exceptions, including students who need phones for translation purposes or learning disabilities.