The move comes after students struggled to pay attention in class following remote learning during the pandemic.
Schools across the state reported that following the pandemic — when kids were often glued to their screens for seven hours a day, if not more — students had issues letting go of their devices when they returned to in-person classes.
Teachers told principals that their students struggled to pay attention in class, were constantly distracted by their phones, and didn’t socially engage with one another in person.
Now, close to five years after the pandemic began, schools are considering what to do about their cellphone policies.
Some are beginning to use magnetic locking pouches to prevent students from accessing cell phones during the day, and others are enforcing stronger punishments if a student is found using a cell phone in class, or are even awarding those who voluntarily turn in their phones.
In the Boston Public Schools system, many schools are turning to pouches after the district awarded $842,520 to Yondr, a California-based company that makes cellphone pouches with magnetic locks. The funding covers the cost of the pouches for schools with grades 5-12 that want to use them.