Dear Editor,
Education is heading for a major overhaul in Vermont. Whether it be the governor’s, the House, or the Senate proposal (or most likely some amalgam of the three), it is happening. Although the pressure for action is intense now, we won’t actually see substantive changes play out until 2027 or beyond.
In the meantime, there is important pending legislation which will start showing positive results very quickly at minimal cost. I’m talking about cell-phone-free schools (see phonefreeschoolsvt.com for more information).
Vermont doesn’t risk being too far out in front on this issue: according to the National Conference of State Legislatures, at least 27 states have introduced bills to ban or limit cell phone use in schools. Eight states across the political spectrum including Florida, California, Louisiana and Minnesota have already enacted laws, underscoring the urgency of addressing this public health crisis.
In a guest editorial piece printed in this publication last week, March 12-18, social psychologist Jonathan Haidt made an eloquent case for action. Research clearly links cell phone use to the deterioration of students’ mental health. Usage is linked to isolation, loneliness, depression, bullying, heightened sexualization, suicidal urges, and — not surprisingly — poor attention and performance in school. We know that developing brains should avoid substances that can harm them, like alcohol. Cell phone usage can actually change the way that young brains develop.
Many schools already have a “no phones in class” policy, but that doesn’t solve the problem: students can get their phone “fix” every 45 minutes or so between classes (if indeed they are not cheating on the policy in class), and may spend much of class time anticipating that relief. Cell phone apps are designed to be addictive, to capture our attention for as long and as intensely as possible — while collecting and monetizing that data as well.
At the handful of Vermont schools that have voluntarily adopted a “bell to bell” policy (the phone is handed in when you arrive and picked up when you leave), there was initial resistance and skepticism from students, staff and parents. That’s understandable.
But just midway through their first year of going phone free, students at Thetford Academy made a video to log their reactions and thoughts. One after another, they describe with a sense of wonder how kids talk to each other now instead of having their faces buried in a phone.
The Legislature has identical bills, House Bill H.54 and Senate Bill S.21 which would provide all students with the benefits of phone-free schools. Either of these bills should pass easily, given the number of co-sponsors, the positive results where implemented, the minimal cost, the direct evidence and the science supporting the severity of the crisis at hand. The science is clear: time is short and our kids deserve this relief now, not next year or the year after.
Please, contact your legislators and ask them to help advance this crucial bill now.
Robin Chesnut-Tangerman, Middletown Springs
Editor’s note: Chesnut-Tangerman is a former Vermont legislator.
