Checking our phones has become habitual for people, especially for the rising generation. While most kids can learn the latest Tik-Tok trend after a short 30-second tutorial, a lot of them struggle to explain what the Pythagorean Theorem is.
Idaho Governor Brad Little and State Superintendent Debbie Critchfield found this to be a rising problem in Idaho schools, which prompted the release of an executive order dubbed the “Phone Free Act.”
“So, we know that executive orders are often used to address urgent issues and urgent matters,” Critchfield said in an interview with BYU-Idaho Radio. “And really, it’s a way to direct certain groups or certain issues to be focuses on specific initiatives or implementing new procedures.”
Critchfield says the order is simple, and it is up to the districts to put it into practice.
“When we put into place the Phone Free Learning Act, we are asking our districts to have a community conversation about limiting or removing the use of cell phones or other electronic devices that don’t directly correlate to learning in the class,” she said.
Critchfield says the extended use of social media by students is detrimental to their relationships, both socially and in the classroom.
“We believe that social interactions are at an all-time low,” she said. “Attention to screen time is at an all-time high and in some ways is creating some crises that impact the learning environment in the classroom.”
The Phone Free Learning Act will allow students to take a break from the noise of social media and, in the words of Superintendent Critchfield in a news release, “give students the break they need so they can focus their full attention on what they’re at school to do – learn.”
“Thinking about how to implement policies that support learning but also protect a student, so to speak, so that learning can take place is important,” Critchfield said.
The order will give school districts who adopt the policy by the end of the school year a $5,000 one-time reward, addressing the urgency Governor Little and Superintendent Critchfield must create a more successful learning environment for students.