Brookfield High School To Forbid Cellphone Use In Class

BROOKFIELD, CT — Students at Brookfield High School may no longer use their cellphones, earbuds and headphones while at their desks in class.

The new policy was spelled out in a letter from Principal Marc Balanda to the school community on June 19, and is effective immediately.

The crackdown was dictated by "a noticeable increase in cell phone and social media use," according to the letter.

"There is a significant amount of research about the negative effects of adolescent cell phone usage," Balanda wrote, citing the book "The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness," written by Jonathan Haidt, a New York University social psychologist.

The new policy requires students to place their cell phones and earbuds/headphones in a designated cell phone holder, in an assigned and numbered space, located in each classroom and office.

Neither will students be permitted to use their cell phones or earbuds/headphones if they receive a pass to use the bathroom, visit the nurse, or are called to the office. Students can use their cell phones and earbuds/headphones before school, during passing time, study hall, lunch, and after school, according to the new rules.

Balanda said that the Brookfield High School Handbook has always included language restricting student cell phone usage during class unless staff provides explicit permission.

If a parent or guardian needs to make immediate contact with their child, they should contact the Main Office, and our school staff will promptly deliver the message to the student, according to the new policy.

The notion of separating students from their phones in the classroom became a hot topic in Connecticut earlier this year when Gov. Ned Lamont mentioned it during his State of the State address. An unscientific survey of Patch readers at that time found an overwhelming amount of support for denying Connecticut Public School students access to cellphones in class.