as students head back to the classroom at least 13 states have taken steps to address the issue of cell phones in classrooms at the state level for pass legislation for Statewide bands and our 2020 co-anchor Deborah Roberts is here with more a lot of debate on phones no phones in school Deborah good morning to you good morning Michael you know this discussion well too most kids have been dealing with this non-stop phone use it's being fiercely debated and not just among parents who are frustrated and concerned but also among teachers now who say they're competing really with cell phones for their students attention in the classroom so it's no surprise that a growing number of schools around the nation are now beginning this school year with a bold new plan to curb cell phone use during the school day at Clark Central High School in Athens Georgia students glued to their smartphones fill the hallways and common areas but classrooms are cell phone free zones this is a place where student are required to learn it's a Sacred Space and we want to make sure that students are coming to school to actually learn when stepping into class students must hand over their phones for each 90minut period or have a written exception from a parent to keep it out of sight in a backpack the change in the classroom has been huge it has become much easier to teach teachers find different ways to keep phones out of sight from hanging pouches good morning to carts where students plug in to get get a charge during class to envelopes used to track attendance you do not turn in your phone you do not get to go anywhere before this new approach teachers say cell phones were a daily battle I had a student watch an entire episode of Breaking Bad in my class um it's like okay but but math when the district stepped in with Official Guidelines at the start of last year there were growing pains from students students have become more and more addicted to their cell phones there's a whole wide world out there that's you know to them a lot more interesting than the the subtleties of James Baldwin's rhetoric it did take some adjusting you know from having your phone on you to not having your phone on you for the whole 90 minutes of class but you know you you kind of get used to it they understand the reason for the ban they say but wish for more autonomy they can be distractions definitely but also I feel like there are certain times where you should be able to use them if like you done your work you don't really you're not in a rush or nothing like that I feel like it is okay to be on your phone what if an emergency could happen right now what if somebody's text me about something important I feel like instead of being completely against it you should try to integrate it not just completely shun it out students who resist the changes can get creative I've had students try to turn in phones that don't work I've had multiple students turn in a fake phone their teachers say they wish they'd Focus some of that cre creative effort into their classwork instead I feel like I've been able to build more meaningful relationships because I have their attention a little bit more with students now better focused teachers say they've seen a dramatic difference not just in test scores but in their classroom environment if I had a dollar for every time four to five years ago that I would tell a student to put the phone away put the phone away I would probably be able to retire today having the cell phone policy has really allowed um teachers to get get back to doing what we do best which is actually teach instead of policing the cell phone usage very good point it's a tough adjustment for kids but you might think that overall they secretly welcome these rules one study found that more than 70% of kids say they feel better and more peaceful without their phones for a while so these new rules you think would be embraced by parents right well you'll hear from some parents as our series continues later this week and they're not as uh they're not going along with it as well as you might is a surprise some parents some parents you'll hear from them well watch for it thank you Dad