The issue of student cell phone use at school was front and center Tuesday night, as Mathews County School Board members began discussion on crafting a policy to limit what has become a major distraction in the classroom.
During Tuesday’s four-hour meeting in the Mathews High School media center, board members also heard from the public on the matter, with most in favor of very strict restrictions on phones and other digital devices during the school day.
“This is going to be a standing agenda item for some time,” Superintendent of Schools Nancy Welch said in opening the discussion. At present, there is no division-wide policy; the matter is left up to the individual schools and teachers.
“I’ve said it before … it’s been a problem for years,” school board vice chairman John Priest said. A retired teacher himself, Priest said one of the problems he’s encountered is uneven enforcement of whatever policy is adopted. A teacher in one class, he said, may give some leeway to students accessi...