Ban on cellphones, vapes in Ontario classrooms starts this week. Hamilton school boards say they are ready

Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board (HWDSB) and Hamilton-Wentworth Catholic District School Board (HWCDSB) say they are ready to enforce province-wide measures on cellphones and vaping in classrooms when students return to classes in a few days.

HWDSB Superintendent Gerry Smith told CBC Hamilton he welcomed Ontario Ministry of Education's offer to help with the rollout of the plans announced in April. They were designed toreduce distractions in classrooms and improve the health of children, the province said.

Implementation of the classroom ban on cellphones and vapes takes effect Sept. 1.

When the Ministry of Education announced the plans, it said it would be "cracking down on cellphone usage during class time, as well as banning vaping in all schools." School boards were asked to include language to that effect in their code of conduct policies.

Under the new rules, students fromkindergarten to Grade 6 will be required to keep phones on silent and out of sight for the entire school day, unless allowed by an educator. For students in Grades 7 to 12, cellphones will not be permitted during class time unless explicitly directed by the educator.

Additionally, social media websites will be removed from all school networks and devices, and report cards will include comment on students' distraction levels in class.

"We have several schools that already have pieces in place with reference to cellphones," Smith told CBC Hamilton.

"The difference here is, it's everywhere in all schools, so it's an opportunity to kind of have a uniform practice that everyone's aware of and to engage kids."

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Smith said HWDSB has also made the necessary changes to its IT systems to restrict access to social media sites on the board's Wi-Fi.

"We've had to change our systems to block certain social media platforms to be in compliance with the ministry directive," he said.

Smith said students who are used to being able to go online or "pulling up their Instagram" must now "adjust" because "that won't be available on any board Wi-Fi. That's just [one of the] changes to adapt to."

Expanding partnership with public health

The government has also strengthened the rules around students caught using or carrying vapes or cigarettes.

Students will be required to give those items in, if they are found to have them, and parents will benotified immediately. The provincial government alsoannounced $30 million in its 2024 budget to install vape detectors and other security upgrades in schools.

Smith said the new stance on vaping provides an opportunity for HWDSB to expand its partnership with public health in support of students.

"When you think about vaping and some of the spin offs and the addiction piece it's a wonderful opportunity to work more deeply with our community partners to deal specifically with vaping," he said.

Meanwhile, the local Catholic school boardsaid thosechanges are now reflected in its Safe Schools policy and Code of Student Conduct and Discipline policy.

In an update on its website, HWCDSBsaid it is committed to ensuring a school learning environment free of distraction.

"Contravention of these expectations will result in the confiscation of the personal mobile device," the update reads.

"Students that require to use their phones or other electronic devices for health and medical reasons, or to support special education needs, may continue to use them during the school day with permission of the teacher and authorization by the school principal."

HWCDSB said it understands that some parents or guardians may need to communicate with their children during the school day.

Parents in these circumstances should contact the school office, it said, adding that students who need to contact their parents or guardians in urgent circumstances are welcome to use the school's telephone located in school offices.