Georgia school implements cellphone pouches during the day
BROOKWOOD, Ga. (CBS, KYMA/KECY) - Students at a school in Georgia are now required to lock up their phones during the school day, and school leaders share why it's necessary.
Essentially, kids put their phones and other electronics, like a smart watch or AirPods, inside a pouch every morning before school starts. It is magnetically sealed, but students will keep that pouch on them all day and they can unlock the pouch at the end of the day.
Headmaster Dr. Randy Watts says students can be easily distracted by having their phones in their pockets, so the pouches keeps them from being able to be distracted.
When it comes to an emergency situation at the school, Dr. Watts says he understands the concerns of parents, but he says students should be paying attention to safety protocols and not be using their phones.
"We need them to be able to follow our emergency plans and we need to be able to get them mobilized and moving quickly. The reality is that a kid with a cell phone in the middle of a school emergency is more likely to be problematic than helpful," Watts said.
Watts says they let parents know in the spring to anticipate this change and even encouraged them to read a book explaining the impacts of kids on their phones during the school day.
He says since they started this two weeks ago, he's actually noticed the cafeteria has been louder because students are actually talking to each other more and being social.
Thomas County Schools say they've also been looking into ways to keep kids from being distracted at school.
