“Law & Order” explores passed bills relevant to teachers and students. What impact will these decisions have on the school?

The newly signed California Assembly Bill [AB] 3216 will require all K-12 school districts in the state to develop a policy restricting or banning cell phone usage during school hours by July 1, 2026.

Schools can decide how to enforce phone use, but if they restrict rather than prohibit it, devices will need to be stored away. Still, students must be given access to their phones during emergencies.

The bill, also known as the Phone-Free School Act, is an extension of AB 272, which Gov. Newsom signed in 2019. This act grants school districts the authority to regulate cellphone usage during school hours.

Currently, teachers have a variety of methods to monitor phone usage in class, and a common way is through phone pockets.

However, social science teacher Robert Bradburn has his own phone policy in his classroom.

“My class phone policy is that I have my students put them behind the zipper of their backpack during class, and I rarely have anybody violate that, so it hasn’t been a problem,” Bradburn said.

The teacher said he is familiar with Gov. Newsom’s policies and found out while scrolling through the news.

“I think that phones are tempting for all of us and distract from learning…,” he said. “It’s also the fact that many people have been using [phones] for a long time and don’t know what life is like without the phone.”

This led Bradburn to prompt a student discussion about the upcoming phone ban in his second-period International Baccalaureate Economics class on Wednesday, Sept. 25.

Junior Sophia Gentile said she has mixed feelings on the matter but is relieved it won’t affect her as a Class of 2026 graduate.

“Mr. Bradburn showed us an article on the board, and at first, I thought that it was pretty good because when we were in middle school and couldn’t have our phones, it was fine, and I felt like I could focus,” Gentile said. “But when I realized that I now use my phone for my Google Calendar and notes, which are all really important to me, I would totally lose track of things.”

But while Gentile still relatively supports the ban, junior Dante Gelles thinks that adding a restriction just gives students an incentive to use their phones in secret.

“I don’t think the phone is the issue, it’s just like what you do in that class that makes you distracted,” Gelles said. “If phones are banned in high school and then you never learn how to police yourself in class, once you get to college and you have free reign, you’re just going to spiral.”

Still, Bradburn said he thinks the bill, signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday, Sept. 23, will bring some benefits as students have more face-to-face interactions.

“I think it will make a difference and will create a space for students to explore other ways to spend their time, other things to think about, and probably more people to talk to,” he said.