Lauren Rivera 
Come this October, Jersey City schools will no longer allow personal devices to be permitted during instructional periods. This new policy was passed during last week’s Board of Education meeting on September 18th, and will go into effect on October 1st. Read on for what to know about the new technology ban happening in Jersey City public schools.
The Policy
The Jersey City Board of Education has banned the use of personal communication devices during class time. The BOE unanimously adopted the new policy on Thursday, September 18th, and it will go into effect on Wednesday, October 1st. This affects all 39 public schools in the district.
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According to the policy, personal communication devices (PCD) includes “computers, laptops, tablets, e-readers, cellular/mobile phones, smartphones, smartwatches, and/or other web-enabled devices of any type that can be used to transmit communications by voice, written characters, words or images, share information, record sounds, process words, and/or capture images.”
These devices will be permitted during recess, lunch, emergencies, or when directed by a school administrator or teacher. Though during class time, other instructional periods, or bathroom breaks, students must turn their devices off or place them in airplane mode and store them in backpacks, lockers, or provided containers.
Students exempt from this policy include those with an Individualized Education Plan (IEP), an Individualized Health Plan (IHP), or a Section 504 Plan.
If students violate the policy, their devices will be taken away until the end of the day. Repeated violations could mean students would have to hand in their personal devices to a school official each morning, with the devices returned at dismissal.
“The Jersey City Board of Education is keenly aware that PCDs are used by students and parents to communicate with each other,” the policy says. “However, the use of PCDs on school grounds must be appropriately regulated to protect students, staff, and the learning environment.”
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