Bethlehem Area SD reports early compliance as electronic device policy rolls out

The Bethlehem Area School District on Oct. 6 told the board its districtwide rollout of a new electronic device policy has produced low observed in-class device use and generally positive early feedback from students and staff.

Assistant Superintendent and Chief Academic Officer Dr. Leeson introduced the update and asked technology supervisor James (presented in the meeting as “mister James”) and building principals to report on implementation. James said the district had completed 2,189 “learning walks” as of the morning of Oct. 1 and used those visits to record whether electronic devices were visible during instruction. He said the district observed devices during instruction 5.5% of the time at the secondary level and 2.3% at the elementary level, for a combined 4.3% rate.

“The learning walks are not evaluative. It's really for us to kind of gain perspective,” James said during the presentation.

Liberty High School Principal Horlick told the board that although some high school students initially resisted the change, communication over the summer and…