MIFFLINTOWN — School administrators and educators have been grappling with the role handheld electronic devices should play in educational spaces since the 1980s.

Back then, students brought pagers to school in increasing numbers. Educators worried those devices would disrupt classrooms and hurt students’ academic performance.

Those concerns continued as cell phones and smart phones became the rage in later decades, leading districts to set policies on where and when personal devices could be used.

Fast forward to today and school boards or superintendents in many states have set policies on cell phones and other technologies in public schools.

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, around 76 percent of schools said they banned the non-academic use of cell phones or smartphones during school hours during the 2021-22 school year, down from 91 percent in 2010.

In many high schools, administrators allow cell phone use at designated times during the school day, such as lunch. Beginning with Florida in 2023, some states have enacted laws or policies regulating student cell phone usage in public schools.

Proponents of the restrictions argued cell phones distract students, adversely affecting learning, and referenced academic research suggesting cellphones and social media increase anxiety and depression in children.

Opponents said cell phones provide educational assistance, such as offering information online or being used as calculators. They add enforcing classroom cellphone bans can be difficult as many parents rely on cell phones to keep in contact with their children, especially during emergencies.

Pennsylvania does not currently have any such regulations. Now, the Juniata County School District, along with other districts around the Juniata Valley, is evaluating its cell phone policy.

Juniata County School District Superintendent of Schools Christie Holderman will discuss the subject at tonight’s district workshop meeting at 7 p.m. at the administration office in Mifflintown.

“We are currently working through cell phones now,” Holderman said. “We do have teachers that limit the use during class. Our policy allows for students to carry and use them during the day.”

At least one director believes handheld devices have consumed society — not just students in class.

“After a long hard day at work, I come home, sit on the couch, and get caught up on what my phone has to show me,” board member Jackson Albert said.

“I have a beautiful wife and three amazing kids…that I am blessed to be able to have in my life and talk to,” he added. “A phone should not be a priority.”

When it comes to the classroom, Albert believes educators and teachers face an uphill battle.

“Cell phones are too much of a distraction to adults and to kids,” Albert explained. “I want our teachers to have every student’s attention in that classroom. Both deserve to have that personal interaction.”

He isn’t convinced the district’s current policy, which relies mostly on teacher discretion, is the best approach.

“A student will use one teacher versus another and say ‘Well so and so said we could have it in their classroom,'” Albert said. “Along with this, when a teacher who does not want a phone in their classroom, catches a student being on it, they should be allowed to remove the distraction.

“However, this is where people — parents — believe that their child’s phone is personal property and can’t be taken from them,” he added. “To me, that’s a messy situation.”

Albert has heard of teachers collecting cell phones during class and storing them in a basket. However, the fact that the phones are still in the room still tempt students to check them and might mean they are not fully invested in the lessons.

“Teachers don’t take time and prepare curriculum for no one to listen to them,” he said.

Albert also cautioned that these types of policies, much like their education, are designed to prepare students for the future.

“An employer — white collar or blue — would not want to see an employee on their phone,” Albert said. “We need to keep the expectations of the real world alive in our students’ minds.”