By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
The Hays High School principal told the Hays school board on March 3, at its work session, the school plans to introduce more cell phone restrictions for the next school year.
Hays High Principal Shawn Henderson spoke to the board, and it heard a report on the state's Blue Ribbon Task Force on Screen Time.
The state task force report highlighted concerns that cell phones are detrimental to students' mental health and distract them from learning.
The task force quoted a 2024 Pew Research Center study that revealed 72% of high school teachers, 33% of middle school teachers, and 6% of elementary school teachers say students distracted by cell phones in class are major problems.
Almost a third of students surveyed in another study said they were distracted by cell phones when they were used during math lessons, and 21 percent said they were distracted by other students using phones during those lessons.
A study published by the Social Science Research Network showed a correlation between cell phone bans and higher GPAs.
Hays High High School has a red/green policy for cell phones.
Red means cell phones are not to be used in class. Green means a teacher will allow cell phones to be out for specific uses.
Superintendent Ron Wilson said no action was taken regarding the cell phone policy during the work session. Staff was interested in getting the board's feedback as it prepares to revise its policy, he said. The new policy will be a part of student handbooks approved by the board this summer.
Wilson said the school is considering more device restrictions but acknowledged enforcement will be difficult.
A study cited by the state task force indicated although 77% of schools have some device restrictions, 97% of teens say they use their cell phones during the school day.
Wilson said the school is still working on a disciplinary policy that would accompany the device restrictions. However, he said it could include confiscating the cell phone or device.
Wilson said the HHS staff said most of their disciplinary issues revolve around cell phone use.
Hays Middle School has a no cell phone policy. They must be in lockers during school hours. Tom Albers told the board the school intends to retain its current policy.
iPads
The board also discussed the possibility of moving Hays High students to iPads instead of laptops.
Wilson said the staff thought the district could save money using iPads. However, iPad prices have increased, decreasing the potential savings.
Because lower grades use iPads, students would not need to learn a new device as they transition to high school. There also would be some cost and labor savings in only having to maintain one type of device.
The iPads also have built-in classroom management software, while software must be purchased separately for the laptops, Wilson said. The iPads have the capability for English language learning to plug headphones into the devices and have classroom lectures translated into Spanish.
The board did not take a vote, but Wilson said he thought the consensus was to continue using laptops at the high school.
The board heard a clarification on the bid process for the Hays High tennis courts. The district rejected a bid because it did not meet specifications.
The board tabled a discussion on electing board leadership. A discussion on having an owner representative specifically for the bond projects will likely be on the next board agenda.
The next school board meeting is March 24.