The district board of education voted to ban cellphones after months of conversations with Park City parents and a survey found 85% of teachers and parents support a no-cellphone policy.
Although it’s still early in the school year, Interim Superintendent Caleb Fine said staff say they’ve seen noticeable differences, especially at Treasure Mountain Junior High and Ecker Hill Middle School. He said conversations between students are not as cellphone-based.
“At Treasure and Ecker where there's no cell phones allowed in the hallways or the cafeterias, you see those conversations being, you know, kinder, more gracious,” Fine said.
Fine also said there has been a noticeable decrease in incidents of bad behavior at Treasure.
Each school is handling the no-cellphone policy differently. Ecker students must keep their phones in a backpack or locker, while Treasure students must keep their phones in locked Yondr pouches. Park City High School students can use their phones in between classes and teachers decide if they can use them during class.
Fine said each school is tailoring its approach based on the ages of its students. For example, Fine said Ecker students have higher rates of compliance with the no-cellphone policy.
“There's a compliance level that is a little bit more natural at that age development, I think students are a little less addicted and a little less reliant on the phone,” he said.
However, some of the positive changes could be related to other district initiatives. Fine said the district has implemented the “Move this World” curriculum in its elementary schools. The curriculum helps integrate social and emotional skills with short, age-appropriate videos.
At Treasure and Ecker, students are learning how to spot and prevent harassment and discrimination during advisory classes as well as how to create healthy relationships. Fine said at the high school the focus is on preventing antisemitism, racism and sexism.
“If our goal is zero, which it is, it's my goal, it's zero incidents of this, then we just can't stop,” he said. “We just have to continue to teach, continue to tweak our lessons to keep them fresh and new for students, and continue to keep it at the forefront of their mind.”
Fine said the district is tracking the number of harassment and discrimination reports in schools to see what impact the cellphone policy and other initiatives have on school communities over time.
