Ottawa students begin returning to school under new classroom cellphone ban

Ottawa schools are enforcing a new ban on cellphone use in classrooms this year and some students are already seeing the rules in full effect.

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The new policy going into effect this coming school year for all Ontario students will mean high schoolers will only be allowed to use their phones during breaks and must keep them out of sight in classrooms unless allowed by teachers for academic purposes.

The rules are even stricter for students from Kindergarten to Grade 6. Their cellphones have to be put away for the entire school day.

Korbin Trudel-Shore, a high school student in Ottawa, says his phone was already confiscated in just his first week of class.

"There was about 40 minutes left of class, and they're doing absolutely nothing," he said. "So, I decided to go on my phone and now I have to pick it up at the end of the day."

Korbin’s grandmother, Connie Gervais, says she used to communicate with him to let him know if she would be late to pick him up.

Not anymore.

"I think the kids got used to it," she said. "And all of a sudden, they're saying, 'no, we're not going to allow it.'"

Tom D’Amico, director of education for the Ottawa Catholic School Board, says research shows students have become more distracted in school.

Tom D'Amico, OCSB Director of Education (Dave Charbonneau/CTV News Ottawa)

"If you're teaching and I pull out my phone just for a couple of seconds to look at my social media feed, there could be someone that's cyberbullying me," he said. "There could be someone that's body shaming me. And that impacted students' ability to learn."

At a high school in Barrhaven, students are facing strict enforcement of the policy. Some, like student Ryder Williams, also had his phone taken away.

"My teacher, he said, 'Can I please have your phone?'" Williams said. "And I said, well, obviously, I have to give it to him."

Barrhaven high school student Ryder Williams uses his cellphone outside of school. (Dave Charbonneau/CTV News Ottawa)

Other items, like AirPods, are also being confiscated.

Joseph Gulas, another student, says his AirPods were taken by a teacher and brought to the office.

"I have to go get them after school, and I'm probably going to miss my bus because I’ve got to go wait in line with everybody that lost their phone and lost everything," he said.

Some students, however, see the benefits of the ban.

"Every time I walk by classes, especially last year, I would see that everyone was on their phones and teachers couldn’t really do anything about it," said Nia Carty, another high school student.

Sydney Cosgrove, also a student, agrees.

"Honestly, sometimes I can get distracted," she said. "So, I do think that it could be a good rule for some who are addicted."

In April, the provincial government also announced new policies to crack down on vaping. Students caught with vape or e-cigarette products on school property as of September will be required to surrender them and parents will be notified immediately.

Social media sites will also be banned from all school networks and devices.