Editor,
I appreciated Jon Mays’ column, “High schools should adopt ‘bell-to-bell’ cellphone ban.” San Mateo is a leader in this space, and our schools are actively developing policies to ensure students get the most out of their education. The next generation is facing a mental health crisis, and the addictive features of social media only underscore the need for action.
Technology is neither inherently good nor bad — what matters is how we design and use it. Students should be engaged in classrooms and using tools that support learning, not distract from it. My legislative colleagues and I passed the Phone Free Schools Act in 2024, and schools across our district are now developing policies to improve student health and academic performance. I also recently convened a town hall with First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom to hear from experts and parents on how to implement these policies effectively and equitably.
Parents aren’t the only ones calling for change. Surveys from RAND and Brookings show that 60%–75% of teens support school-day cellphone restrictions. Early data is promising as well. Research from Florida found improvements in student test scores after restrictions were implemented.
But we must get this right. That same study found increased disciplinary actions and suspensions, particularly for Black students and male students. As schools move forward, they must ensure students have the support they need to succeed during this transition.
Josh Becker
Menlo Park
The letter writer represents District 13 in the California Senate.
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(2) comments
There is something wrong with the minds of "progressives" like Josh Becker. Here we have an issue that people of all political viewpoints can agree on- phones should be restricted for students during the school day. And Becker has to make it about race and "equity"? Why? if "black students and male students" use their phones more in class against school rules, those students should be disciplined. No one needs "support" to stop using phones.. ask teachers at San Mateo High where they already have a bell to bell no phone policy that is working great. This is not hard.
And please San Mateo County voters, can we stop electing people that make the simplest of issues complicated in some weird attempt to score political points? No one is benefitting from this nonsense.
Yes! Thank you Senator Becker!
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