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Survey shows split views; Portsmouth committee moves toward classroom storage and limited use policy
Summary
A district survey of parents, high-school staff and students found majority support for limiting cell-phone use in classrooms; the committee’s policy subcommittee will draft a proposed policy that would require phones secured in classrooms and allow use during passing and lunch.
The Portsmouth School Committee reviewed results of a district cell-phone survey on March 11 and signaled a direction for a forthcoming policy: secure phones in classrooms, with limited use at passing time and lunch, and teacher discretion for academic use.
The district administered three surveys: parents (612 responses, representing 46% of families), high-school staff (78 responses, about 63% of staff) and high-school students (1,306 responses, about 17.4% of enrollment). Results varied by group but showed common themes. Staff responses indicated the highest level of concern: roughly 89.6% of surveyed high‑school faculty said cell-phone access during class hinders students’ focus and learning, and most staff supported protocols that keep phones secured and out of instructional time. Staff options that combined “phones secured in classroom holders” and “phones secured by students” accounted for a majority of preferences.
Parents’ responses showed mixed preferences: about 69.4% of surveyed parents reported their child brings a personal device to school; when asked about nonacademic access during the day, 53.1% said it is not important for students to have access to phones for nonacademic purposes, while 42.9% favored some access during nonacademic times.
Teen respondents were more inclined to keep phones available for limited uses: 96.3% of students said phones should be allowed during class for academic purposes and nearly all surveyed students supported phone access during passing and lunch. However, 72.8% of students said prohibiting phones in class would not improve their academic performance.
The policy subcommittee has recommended further work and will return a draft to the full committee in two meetings for consideration. Committee members emphasized the need for consistent implementation, enforcement and clear language that distinguishes between carrying phones (possession) and using phones during instructional time. The committee also discussed practical exceptions for classes like art, photography and video production where phones may be used for coursework, and noted technology-filtering differences between district Chromebooks and students’ personal cellular devices.
Policy staff said they will finalize recommended language and return the policy to the subcommittee for another review before presenting a proposed policy to the full committee in two meetings; the superintendent suggested rolling out any new procedures at the start of the next school year and surveying teachers again after implementation to measure effects.
