Dive Brief:

• As a growing share of elementary school students get their own cell phones, administrators have to decide whether to allow them in school and where to draw the line.
• The Washington Post reports Maryland’s Montgomery County public schools are considering allowing students to bring phones to school if they limit use to after-school hours and while they are on buses, but concerns include safe storage in the youngest students’ cubbies and self-control.
• While some teachers may use the phones as part of instruction, others could have a hard time keeping students away from them during class time — and there is a fear that allowing phones in school at the elementary level would underscore the economic divide among students.

Dive Insight:

Elementary school administrators seem to be facing the same dilemma their counterparts in middle and high schools faced years ago. There are significant benefits and drawbacks to having more devices in schools, though benefits are limited to classrooms where teachers want to incorporate more digital technology.

At New Millford High School in New Jersey, then-principal Eric Sheninger spent the first part of 2009 taking cell phones away from students who were defying school rules by using them and then completed an about-face by encouraging their use in class. These devices became a core element of the school’s academic culture and charging stations were added throughout the school. It is possible the elementary schools of tomorrow will look the same.