ROANOKE, VA – We’ve talked a lot about school cell phone policies over the past few months - but starting after winter break it’s going to get real.
Whether it’s putting your phone in a locked pouch for the entire day - or being able to use it only in between classes, changes are ahead for many students.
But as for what happens when your child breaks the rules? There’s some debate on the best form of discipline.
”There are just some rules that we all have to follow, and there’s a good reason. We’re not just trying to be punitive,” Bedford County Deputy Superintendent Karen Woodford said.
New school cell phone policies have proven divisive - and with state guidelines not setting any specific disciplinary measures, schools are taking different approaches.
“We had some parents who were concerned that some of our discipline pieces were a little bit strong to start with,” Woodford said.
Karen Woodford is the deputy superintendent in Bedford County, which has one of the stricter policies.
“It is a progressive discipline model, So, usually students are warned, then they may get a day of in-school suspension,” she said.
The model goes like this - your first offense is a warning. Second offense - one day of in-school suspension. Third - three days of ISS.
Then, once you get to your fourth and fifth offenses - you’re looking at out-of-school suspension.
“It’s not a secret, it’s not something where kids are gonna ‘oh we’re gonna get caught and end up in ISS’ and didn’t know about it,” Woodford said.
In Roanoke City - they’re taking a slightly different approach.
The first offense is a warning. The second offense - the device is taken for the day and parents are called. By the fourth offense, there’s an in-person conference.
School board chair Dr. Eli Jamison tells us their model is also progressive.
“By the time a kid will have faced something as significant as ISS, there’s going to be a lot of conversations. We are not looking to have a zero-tolerance policy,” Jamison said.
Jamison says they want to make sure students know this is serious but also give them room to grow.
“We’ve tried to really bear in mind that we all make mistakes. And I think our progressive discipline model reflects that you get a second and third chance, but you’re going to get more and more attention every time you do it,” Jamison said.
Both districts may have different approaches, but in the end, they’re both aiming for the same goal—ensuring students succeed in the classroom.
“We have a great group of students, and the students we’ve talked to, they may not like it, but they get it,” Woodford said.
You can find all of our areas' updated cell phone policies here.
