USDB committee approves student-owned device policy; tighter limits at deaf school, phone use allowed as assistive tech at blind school

The Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind (USDB) standing committee voted unanimously to review and approve a student-owned device policy and forward it to the Utah State Board of Education for final approval. The committee action followed a presentation describing separate approaches for the agency's deaf and blind programs.

The committee chair, Lianne Wood, opened the agenda item and introduced a presentation explaining that USDB considered two model policies — one more restrictive and one more permissive — and chose a restrictive model for the deaf-school program. The policy adopted by the committee requires personal devices to be powered off, set to silent, or stored out of sight from the start of the school day until dismissal, except when a teacher permits device use for instructional purposes.

Nut graf: Committee members and USDB presenters said the restriction is intended to protect classroom engagement and visual attention in the deaf school, while allowing controlled device use in the blind school for assistive-technology instruction. The committee unanimously agreed to forward the policy to the full board for final approval.

USDB presenters told the committee that the deaf-school restriction is aimed at ensuring students give visual attention to teachers and classroom instruction. A presenter said teachers can call for device use when it is needed for instruction, but that generally devices should not be visible in class because visual distraction prevents effective instruction for deaf students. The presenter also referenced research and prior board discussion that informed the choice of a restrictive policy for that campus.

On the school-for-the-blind side, presenters said the program needs to teach students how to use smartphones and other personal devices as assistive technology. The blind program was described as small (11 students currently enrolled) and easy to monitor; device use there will be at the discretion of the director and classroom teachers for instructional purposes.

Board member Cindy Davis asked how extensive device use was at each school and how the policy would be enforced. USDB staff said the school for the blind does not currently have a problem with non-instructional device use because of small class sizes and close teacher monitoring; staff said no additional cost has been incurred to implement the policy. For the deaf school they said students are commonly attached to phones and staff have seen classroom disruption when devices are allowed. The presenters said teachers received training at the start of the school year and that the enforcement approach emphasizes instruction and correction rather than punitive discipline; staff described placing confiscated devices in lockers or returning them after a conversation with the student.

On storage, presenters said devices are currently placed in student lockers on arrival; the policy allows school leaders the option to purchase keyed phone-storage lockers in the future but no such purchase has been made.

Action: Committee member Cindy Davis moved that the committee review and approve the student-owned device policy and forward it to the board for final approval. The motion passed unanimously; the committee recorded the outcome as forward to the board for final approval.

Ending: The committee signaled it will return to review policies and implementation details in future meetings as necessary; the approved motion will be included in materials for the full Utah State Board of Education to consider on final action.