VT Digger~Final Reading: Should Vermont Ban Cellphones from Schools

Link to VT Digger: https://vtdigger.org/2025/04/24/final-reading-should-vermont-ban-cellphones-from-schools/

At least 14 states have passed laws that restrict students’ use of smartphones in schools. Vermont lawmakers are debating whether to follow suit.

Students' cell phones sit in baskets after they were turned in at the start of the school day in Rio de Janeiro, Wednesday Feb. 5, on the first day of a national ban that restricts the use of smartphones in elementary and high schools. (AP Photo / Bruna Prado)

by Habib Sabet  April 24, 2025, 6:30 pm

Ask almost any educator in the country and they’ll tell you: the phones are getting out of hand. 

“It’s a topic of interest just about anywhere,” Mike McRaith, associate executive director of the Vermont Principals Association, told members of the House Committee on Education last week. “Generally speaking, there’s a more universal understanding that there’s a real risk with digital addiction.” 

Growing concerns about the emotional and cognitive impacts of chronic smartphone and social media use among children have led to a nationwide movement to ban personal devices in classrooms. 

Already 14 states have implemented some form of a smartphone ban in schools, with eight more recommending that school boards adopt a policy. The legislatures of 23 other states, including Vermont, are actively weighing whether to follow suit. Also, many countries have put in place different versions of a nationwide school cellphone ban, including in Europe, and, recently, Brazil.

In Montpelier, lawmakers are considering H.54, a bill that would require school districts and independent schools to develop and adopt policies prohibiting students from using personal electronic devices, including cellphones and smartwatches, during the school day (the legislation includes exceptions for students who need certain accommodations). 

As introduced, the bill would also ban schools from using social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram to communicate with students, aiming to discourage the integration of social media into education at all.

“I’m in full favor of a bell-to-bell ban,” Rep. Casey Toof, R-St. Albans Town, told fellow committee members Thursday. “I think this is something that’s really important.”

The bill doesn’t dictate how schools would implement the prohibition. Some Vermont schools like Harwood Union Middle and High School have already adopted policies requiring students to place their phones in lockable pouches each morning. 

But advocates of the bill have also pointed to more cost effective methods for collecting and storing smartphones, like using manila folders or bins.

“I’m very mindful of the burden of the expense of storage, and that concerns me to some degree,” Rep. Emily Long, D-Newfane, told committee members Thursday.

Although the bill has broad support in the House, its immediate future is uncertain. House lawmakers have considered tacking a phone-ban onto other pieces of related legislation this year, like the Kids Code, a bill that would require social media platforms to adjust their design codes for users under 18. Legislators could also continue working on the bill until next year. 

In a written statement to VTDigger, Rep. Peter Conlon, D-Cornwall, chair of the House Education Committee, said the panel was still mulling over its options and considering what the “Senate’s appetite” to pass the legislation this year in any form would be. 

— Habib Sabet