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Bill H.696
SECTION 1. There shall be a commission to study and make recommendations to the Joint Committee on Education and the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education regarding the presence of students’ phones in schools and classrooms and their effect on educational outcomes and student mental health.
SECTION 2. The commission shall consist of 2 members appointed by the senate president, 1 of whom shall be the senate chair of the joint committee on education, and 1 of whom shall serve as co-chair of the commission; 2 members appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives, 1 of whom shall be the house chair of the joint committee on education, and 1 of whom shall serve as co-chair of the commission; 1 member appointed by the minority leader of the senate; 1 member appointed by the minority leader of the house of representatives; the secretary of education or a designee; the commissioner of elementary and secondary education or a designee; 2 members appointed by the governor, 1 of whom shall be an expert on developmental psychology and mental health, and 1 of whom shall be an expert on education and the science of learning; and 1 person appointed from each of the following organizations: the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents, Inc.; the Massachusetts Association of School Committees, Inc.; the Massachusetts Teachers Association; the American Federation of Teachers, Massachusetts; the Massachusetts PTA; the Digital Wellness Lab at Boston Children’s Hospital.
SECTION 3.
The commission shall investigate the effects of the presence of students’ phones in schools, including their effects on student learning and student mental health and development, and a review of current policies across districts and schools in the Commonwealth, and make recommendations regarding policies for schools, school districts, and the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.
These recommendations shall include:
(i) whether students should be prohibited from using their phones from the start of the school day to the end of the school day, or whether this prohibition shall exclude any particular periods such as lunch or recess;
(ii) whether school policy shall be that students may keep their phones in their bags or whether they must be kept in a locker or some other place during the school day;
(iii) whether such policies should be promulgated at the state level and binding on school districts, or whether such policies should be promulgated at the state level with incentives to local and regional districts to adopt them, or whether such policies should be promulgated at the state level as model policies, or whether such policies should be promulgated at the district level;
(iv) whether any other technology or tools should be used in the course of implementing a policy regarding phones in schools;
(v) whether the Commonwealth or individual districts should pursue any public or private funding to finance any such policies.
SECTION 4.
The commission shall report to the joint committee on education and to the department of elementary and secondary education its findings and recommendations on or before January 1, 2026.
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