Reflection: My year limiting my phone & watch

This one is going to feel a little different. It has literally taken me months to write this blog, not because it's difficult. It's because it almost feels silly. And it all starts with a law the state of Ohio passed last year. Thanks to House Bill 250, by July 2025, all Ohio school districts had to "establish an official policy governing cellphone usage during school hours and seeks to minimize student use of cell phones in K-12 schools." (link to article)

Each district needed to have a policy. A policy. Something showing how they were going to limit cellphones during the school day. My district chose to go with a no phone & no smartwatch during the school day policy. I was overjoyed! Phones and watches are a huge distraction. I knew that. I lived that the year prior when I was back in the classroom after 8 years. I read "The Anxious Generation" (Jonathan Haidt) and I agree with the research he has collected ... phones are harming our kids. Yes - I was pumped to see how this policy impacted our kids. I was worried not all of the teachers would follow it.

Then I started thinking ... I was in a unique position. I was the technology teacher, for peke's sake! I was newly back in the classroom and it was only in my 2nd year at this district. I did my best to balance offline and online activities in my room. I brought in the local police department to talk with the kids about being safe online. Everything I did had some kind of technology component to it. My whole job was about using tech better/safer/well.

I also saw my colleagues, friends, family, and myself. I saw how we all interact with our devices. As adults, WE can't help ourselves. Not allowing phones & smartwatches in the classroom was exciting! But then I thought about MY phone and MY watch. 

Sure - I'm an adult.

Sure - I "think" I'm good about managing my time on my phone.

Uhhh, well - I put a time limit on social media for myself.

... and - I'm still drawn to notifications ... so much so I didn't turn them back on after my last summer vacation so I DIDN'T feel that "need" to look at that red bubble. (It HELPS!)

Sure - I'm a good example.

AM I a good example? I thought long and hard about this. 

Does being an adult give me a "pass"? 

Right?

I thought about it for a looooooong time and I decided I was going to follow the policy, too. By choice. I decided I would live the same ban as the kids. I also thought it would be a great conversation piece with them and my colleagues. 

With each group of students, I started with the same statement. "You have to leave your phone & watch in your locker by district policy, per the state of Ohio. I am choosing to follow this same policy." I did clarify I would be putting them in my desk drawer because I don't have a locker, and I would check it at lunch and my plan period.

There was very little pushback and questioning. The #1 question they had for me was, "Mrs. Kiefer, what if your family needs to get ahold of you?" Easy, I responded, I gave them all the office phone number to call. The office can get ahold of me. (Plus, my 2 youngest daughters also had a phone ban at their school.)

It was shocking. Shockingly GOOD! Yes, it was hard at first. I had all the thoughts I'm sure the kids did. "What if someone texts me?" "What if I miss a phone call?" "My wrist feels naked." "Will I still close my exercise rings?" "What if there is an emergency?"

Guess how many phone calls I missed from my family? A couple. 

Guess how many were urgent. None. 

Did I miss text messages? Yep! I would check it at lunch and sometimes there were a shocking amount. 

How many of them meant I missed out on something? Not a single one. 

I survived. And I loved it!!! I had a new appreciation of being able TO TEACH. I didn't have buzzing on dinging on my wrist or in my pocket. I taught. I interacted with the kids. It was great! I believe my students were far less distracted. I did have to take a few phones and watches, but it wasn't anything like the year before. 

After a full school year of this, I find that it's a lot easier for me to put my phone down while I'm at home and walk away. I don't feel like I have to be glued to it. I have very few notifications on my watch. It has gone back being more of a watch than anything. (Ok, I'm a runner, so it tracks that for me and it's pretty awesome at setting timers when I need to remember something in 5 or 10 minutes.)

I share this because I know I'm not alone in feeling the same addiction to devices as our kids. I share this because being mindful of how we used devices is the greatest example our kids see. I share this because I'm 46 and I survived a year in the classroom without my phone in my pocket or my watch on my wrist. I share this because YOU CAN DO THIS, TOO! And I hope you see and feel the impact on YOU, so that you can work towards the same positive impact with our kids.

I hope you read this and try it. Give it a week. I promise you'll notice a difference. And then I hope you share a message here. How'd it go? How did you feel? Let me know below, or reach out on social media. I'd love to hear from you.

And if you are interested, I've written more on this topic. You can find it here: Phones + School ... What Do We Do?

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