Rollout of Alberta's school cellphone ban raising concerns among teachers

The head of the Alberta Teachers' Association says the rollout of new policies banning cellphone use in classrooms starting this fall has some teachers confused about how they'll be expected to follow them.

President Jason Schilling said about two weeks before most kindergarten to Grade 12 students go back to class, it's unclear why new provincial standards will be in place for Sept. 1, while school divisions have until Jan. 1 to put their own policies and procedures on the books.

"I find the discrepancy between the two dates bizarre," he told The Canadian Press.

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Alberta has previously allowed school boards to decide whether or not to restrict cellphones, but Schilling said for those teachers in schools who don't yet have such rules, there's concern.

"When I talk to my colleagues about this, they are (going to be) confiscating phones that are very expensive, and they've got some hesitations about doing that without any kind of proper policies or rules and procedures put in place before they start doing this," he said.

Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides announced in June that personal devices will need to be turned off and stored out of sight during class time, with exceptions for specialized learning or medical needs.

In a statement to The Canadian Press, Nicolaides said while the ban takes effect in the fall, he's leaving it up to local school authorities to finalize their own policies by the new year.

Those include rules on how cellphones will need to be stored, "roles and responsibilities, consequences, and annual notification that are reflective of the province's expectations."

Schilling said it's important students and parents understand what happens when the rules are violated.

The province's move to crack down on cellphones in schools followed the announcement of similar restrictions in Quebec, Ontario and B.C.

Saskatchewan and Manitoba have since followed suit.

Schilling said the Alberta Teachers' Association supports restricting smartphones during instructional time, but not the timeline.

Instead, the government could call for all the rules to be in place on Jan. 1 so that there's clarity, he said.

Meanwhile, some Alberta school divisions say they're ready to have the new ban in place as soon as school starts.

Joanne Anderson, spokesperson for the Calgary Board of Education, said it will take effect on the first day of classes, Aug. 29.

"More information will be provided to staff and families next week in advance of the first day of classes," said Anderson, noting that "administrative regulation" will be finalized before the Jan. 1 deadline.

Veronica Jubinville, spokesperson at the Edmonton Public School Board, said many schools in the division already have cellphone rules, so the government's requirements will either reinforce those or set new standards for the beginning of the school year.

"The division feels prepared for the start of the 2024-25 school year," she wrote in a statement.

Jubinville said the Jan. 1 deadline gives schools time to put in rules that go beyond the government's orders, if they want.

Superintendent Dave Driscoll at the Palliser School Division, which covers schools in southern Alberta, said in a statement the new direction will be a "significant change," but procedures will be in effect for the beginning of this school year.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 20, 2024.