OPINION
What Will Happen Once Senate Bill 158 is Put in Place?
State Senator Andrew Brenner gives a speech on students' phone usage in schools (Photo: The Ohio Senate).
Phone usage is very common in school, but Ohio Senate Bill 158 aims to change that. Introduced on May 14th of this year, the bill proposes an absolute ban on phones in schools, even during lunches and free periods. The bill, if passed by the House and the governor, will need to be in place by January 1st 2026. Last year, House Bill 250 was put in place, making schools put restrictions on phone usage. This resulted in our school, Grandview Heights High School, having phone pockets in every classroom and requiring phones to be put there every period. Although this restricted phone usage, it did not outright ban it, as phones could still be used in study halls, during lunch, and if needed for school.
An article by the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce describes what the ban will look like, stating that no phones will be used on school property and shall be stored in backpacks or designed spaces by schools, and describes the punishment for failing to follow these rules, ranging from a verbal warning to a meeting with a parent. It also describes that phones are not the only thing banned, as anything that is powered by batteries or electricity while being able to communicate and receive information or a message is not allowed. This includes things ranging from airpods to morse code decoders. In another article by the ODEW, it is said that there are some exceptions to this ban: students with individualized learning programs, student learning (if deemed appropriate by district board), monitoring health, or if there is an active threat or emergencies.
You might be wondering “Why go through all this trouble to ban phones?” As stated by the ODEW, recent studies have shown that phones in school cause a decline in the mental health of students. This led to people believing that the ban would be beneficial for students, and that the lack of phones would help people learn. However, the phones may not be the only reason for this, as there are many factors that have and continue to contribute to decline in mental health, as covered in another article on The Word, and banning phones could possibly add to this as well. Phones help students relax, and banning them completely during their free periods and lunch is unnecessary and perhaps even unhelpful to them.
Based on a random sample of 5 students across all grades, students seem to dislike the phone ban, with some viewing it as unnecessary. One student, Neil Ford Colahan, even said he felt his rights were violated by it, as he would no longer be able to “play Clash Royale.” Truly heartbreaking. Students also thought that banning phones would be a roadblock in some classes, as sometimes phones can be used for research since sites and photos are not blocked on them. Phones can also serve as digital cameras, which are very helpful when taking photos for labs or in photography class.
Even though the banning of phones may not be accepted by students it is an inevitable event that will take place soon, so we must be ready and prepared to face it.