OSAKIS – For the middle and high school students of Osakis, mobile phones are taboo and go in their pockets.

Tuesday night, August 27, the Osakis School Board approved a revision to the district’s cell phone policy that is stricter but more consistent across the board. School Board Member Justin Dahlheimer says the cell phone ban for middle school students in particular will take some time to implement.

“This is a big change: From a permissive environment in grades 7 to 12 to saying that there is no permission for these grades and that they basically have to earn the right to drive with cell phones,” says Dahlheimer. “And in grades 10 to 12, we will regulate that in our classrooms.”

“The old policy allowed device use in our building in all classrooms to a certain degree, with teacher approval,” Dahlheimer continues. “It also allowed device use in hallways and during recess for everyone. I’ve talked about 7th through 12th grade now. There’s nothing going on in elementary school – there’s always no devices there. In 7th through 12th grade, device use was always allowed to a certain degree. Now, if we look at what was approved tonight, in 7th through 9th grade and middle school lunch break, device use would not be allowed. Their devices would always stay in their lockers. And if they were found with their device at any point during a school day, there would be detention. So it’s going to be a no-nonsense policy for 7th through 9th grade, because that’s based on our research. Up until 9th ​​grade, it’s pretty clear. There should be absolutely no reason why devices are needed in our school.”

Osakis Principal Brad Hoffarth told the board that research shows middle school students often make poor choices when it comes to device use, including cyberbullying and posting inappropriate photos.

And the focus group of 18 teachers proposed a policy that was more consistent across all areas.

“(Teachers) don’t have to worry about devices that their students have with them,” Dahlheimer says, “because that’s been a consistent element from 10th through 12th grade — no use of devices in the classroom. They’re just allowed in the classroom and they have to put it in one of those phone holders. That way, we’re admitting that they have it with them, because (they can use devices during) recess and lunch. But the teachers who are in their classroom decide what use is allowed in their classroom, if any. And they’ve all said they don’t want any use in their classroom unless it’s an extraordinary circumstance, like a group project that requires a photo or a timer or something like that.”

However, as students began driving and taking jobs, the focus group had to grapple with the reality of having to coordinate class schedules and extracurricular activities.

“The reality and the data have shown that students in grades 10-12 have to communicate a lot when it comes to jobs,” Dahlheimer says. “Their employer and their parents are increasing communication. According to the data, 74% of our students in grade 10 and above are contacting their parents weekly or more because of their schedules. So once they can drive again and have a job, it’s going to be acknowledged that they need devices and we need approval for that. Otherwise, we’re not going to be able to meet the likely resistance from parents and students and we may end up with a policy that’s hollowed out and means nothing because students have all these exceptions.”

Another issue that came to the fore was device addiction. Teacher Hailey Jensen told the group that students have come to her crying because they know they are addicted to their phones and other devices but can’t cope without them. “They are very aware of their addiction,” Jensen said. “They just don’t know how to stop.”

Teachers, on the other hand, are looking forward to new connections with their students when devices are no longer involved. Teacher Lee Bottelberghe spoke about the results of a device-banning policy at another school where he taught. “You’ll probably see this different reaction in class in about two weeks. The kids will talk to you more about things; they’ll smile, they’ll laugh more instead of just staring at me when I ask a question.”

The new regulation will come into force when school starts on Tuesday, September 3rd.