A bill that would limit cell phone use in Michigan classrooms is likely to make its way to the governor’s desk following a vote in the state Senate, Thursday.
The proposal sponsored by Republican State Rep. Mark Tisdel, has received bipartisan support.
Under the bill, schools would need to create polices limiting students’ use of cell phones during class. The bill includes some exceptions including for medical and instructional purposes and for emergencies.
Supporters of the legislation say the ban is necessary to help students stay focused during class and could help schools when it comes to disagreements between school officials and parents.
“The overwhelming consensus is that cell phones in a classroom are a major distraction and are causing students to fall further behind in their learning,” said WKAR Director of Education Robin Pizzo.
Pizzo said teachers are exhausted from having to manage and monitor cell phone use and the culture cell phone use creates in the classroom.
“There are all types of cyber bullying and texting, maybe some inappropriateness in what's being seen or viewed on cellphones,” she said.
Several schools across the state and in Mid-Michigan already have policies limiting cellphones in place but Pizzo said it remains an ongoing issue for teachers despite rules.
“It's an ongoing struggle for teachers to have to monitor this policy and for school staff to have to monitor this policy…there's always this ongoing conversation of, ‘can I have my phone? This is a time I need my phone,”’ Pizzo said.
This negotiation between teachers and students over phone-use cuts into class instruction time, Pizzo said, and that doesn’t include the time it takes for teachers to collect and return devices before and after class.
She adds it’s unclear how big an impact the bill could have on schools given there aren’t any penalties for schools who don’t comply or incentives for those that do.
But Pizzo said there are still positives about the dialogue around the bill.
“It does allow for there to be some real conversations with parents and with caregivers and with the education community about what cell phones are doing to our children's learning and how it is decreasing the quality of learning that takes place during the school day,” she said.
If the bill is signed into law, it would go into effect at the start of 2026-2027 school year.
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Interview Highlights:
On what educators are saying about cellphones in classrooms:
"The overwhelming consensus is that cell phones in a classroom are a major distraction and are causing students to fall further behind in their learning...Many teachers are also saying they are exhausted from having to manage and monitor the constant cell phone use and all that cell phones create within the culture of their classrooms."
On what local educators in school cellphone policies are seeing:
There's always this ongoing conversation of, 'can I have my phone? This is a time I need my phone.' Students spend a lot of time trying to negotiate the opportunity to get the phone, which means teachers spend a lot of time negotiating why students shouldn't or cannot have the phone during instructional time, and all of that takes away from quality instructional time.
On the bill's limitations in creating change:
"The bill doesn't have any penalties connected to the cell phone ban, so if a school doesn't implement the policy, what implications will that have for that school? Not much right now, as established in the bill, and if there are penalties, how will that impact our students’ learning again? And who's going to monitor that? But what it does allow is for there to be some real conversations with parents and with caregivers and with the education community about what cell phones are doing to our children's learning and how it is decreasing the quality of learning that takes place during the school day."
Interview Transcript:
Melorie Begay: The State Senate is expected to vote on a bill that would require schools to create policies restricting cell phone use among students across Michigan classrooms.
The proposal has received bipartisan support. Several schools in Mid-Michigan already have some form of policy or ban in place. Here to talk about the bill and cell phone use in classrooms is WKAR Director of Education, Robin Pizzo. Good morning. Robin, thanks for being here.
Robin Pizzo: Good morning.
Begay: So, what have you heard from people in the education field?
Pizzo: The overwhelming consensus is that cell phones in a classroom are a major distraction and are causing students to fall further behind in their learning. They also create terrible focus and attention habits and decreased student overall mental health and social emotional well-being.
Many teachers are also saying they are exhausted from having to manage and monitor the constant cell phone use and all that cell phones create within the culture of their classrooms. There are all types of cyber bullying and texting, maybe some inappropriateness in what's being seen or viewed on cell phones. And so there are a lot of negatives, unfortunately, impacting the classrooms with cell phones being readily available at the fingertips of every child in the classroom.
Begay: Several schools in Mid-Michigan have already implemented some type of restriction on cell phone use in classrooms. What's changed since those policies were put in place>?
Pizzo: Not much. Unfortunately, you know, the biggest issue is, it's an ongoing struggle for teachers to have to monitor this policy and for school staff to have to monitor this policy. So students coming in, some of the schools have the lock cases where the students put the phones in the locked cases, but there's always this ongoing conversation of, can I have my phone? This is a time I need my phone.
Students spend a lot of time trying to negotiate the opportunity to get the phone, which means teachers spend a lot of time negotiating why students shouldn't or cannot have the phone during instructional time, and all of that takes away from quality instructional time.
Begay: And do you think a bill like this could have an impact?
Pizzo: It could have an impact. But right now, the bill doesn't have any penalties connected to the cell phone ban, so if a school doesn't implement the policy, what implications will that have for that school? Not much right now, as established in the bill, and if there are penalties, how will that impact our students’ learning again? And who's going to monitor that?
But what it does allow is for there to be some real conversations with parents and with caregivers and with the education community about what cell phones are doing to our children's learning and how it is decreasing the quality of learning that takes place during the school day.
Begay: So, it sounds like this is a problem in classrooms that's going to take more than just statewide policy. It's something that's going to have to involve parents in the conversation.
Pizzo: Absolutely, absolutely, and I think our parents are definitely, parents that I talk to, they're exasperated. They are trying to find ways to support the need to be connected with their children in times of emergency or a safety crisis, but also they recognize how invaluable it is to have clear focus and clear attention when it comes to the classroom instruction, and they want their children to do the best that they can do and have the best opportunity to learn and know that the phones can be very distracting.
They understand that phones are distracting in their own homes with how they communicate with their children. And so, I think it's about coming together to find the best solution. And I definitely agree that the bill, as it moves forward, can continue to help put our understanding of what quality instruction looks like without distractions and that our children need focus time to be able to do well in their academic skill acquisition.
Begay: Robin Pizzo is WKAR’s Director of Education. Thanks for being here, Robin.
Pizzo: Thanks for having me.
