Mercer County superintendent testifies on cell phone bans in PA schools

A superintendent in Mercer County testified in front of the Pennsylvania Education Committee on the impact of cell phones in schools across the commonwealth during a hearing on Tuesday.

The hearing focused on schools' cell phone policies and how technology impacts student learning, classroom environments and safety.

West Middlesex and Reynolds Superintendent Raymond Omer testified about his schools' cell phone bans and how the schools worked with students and parents to create a plan that works for everyone.

Omer added that because he is the superintendent at two districts, he was able to work with both schools on how they wanted to structure the ban and implement different rules depending on students' and parents' needs.

"What happened here at Reynolds was that the students actually came to us and recognized as part of their initiative to improve academic performance, they wanted to be left without the technology, so as long as we had rules in place for everyone to follow of cell phones being banned, the kids were ok with it," Omer said.

"The school is decompressed, the feedback from the teachers is that the students are more focused on academics, they're engaging from bell to bell quicker [and] there's less transition time in getting the class started," Omer continued.

This testimony came shortly after bipartisan legislation was introduced to require all school districts in Pennsylvania to adopt policies to prohibit cell phone usage throughout the school day.

You can read much more about this legislation in our related coverage below.

RELATED COVERAGE:

Bipartisan bill to ban student cellphone use in PA schools