The Maine School Administrative District 75 board will consider a proposal that would require high school students to keep their cellphones locked inside special pouches from the start of the school day until after the final bell.

The recommendation came from the district’s Personal Technology Study Group, which researched other districts’ policies on student phone use. It also surveyed parents, educators and students.

The study group presented its findings to the SAD 75 Board of Directors on Feb. 27. The district includes Harpswell, Topsham, Bowdoin and Bowdoinham.

Under SAD 75’s current policy, high school students are allowed to use their phones in between classes and at lunchtime. The policy, approved in 2010, prohibits student phone use at the district’s middle school. It doesn’t address elementary school usage.

Some local educators say cellphones are a constant distraction for high school students. Even when students can’t use the devices, they’re anticipating the next chance to check for likes or replies to their posts and texts.

“We’d like to free our students of the burden of phone access during the school day,” said Chris Hoffman, principal of Mt. Ararat High School in Topsham. “And we’d like to fill that void with a greater opportunity for socialization through peer bonding and peer-adult interactions that are away from cellphones.”

Hoffman, a member of the study group, said its survey found teachers and parents overwhelmingly agree phones and other devices are a distraction from learning. Nearly 70% of parents favor banning their use throughout the entire school day, he said.

However, students participating in the survey felt very differently, Hoffman said. Most students said they regard phones and smartwatches as a positive resource rather than a distraction.

“The data does suggest there’s a gulf of understanding between students and adults on this topic,” Hoffman said.

Hoffman has said the most urgent challenge facing educators today is how to curb the negative effects of social media and smartphone use on children and adolescents. One of the biggest concerns is that users, young and old, can become addicted to online interactions.

One of the most commonly cited reasons to allow students access to their phones during the school day is to contact their parents if they get sick or have an emergency. Hoffman said the school would fill that communication gap, as it has in the past.

He said having sick students visit the school’s health center, rather than calling their parents directly to pick them up, would help the school monitor illnesses and ensure students get proper care.

As part of its work, the study group visited Morse High School in Bath, which already prohibits student cellphone use during the day. It uses fabric pouches made by a company called Yondr that can be locked and unlocked using special devices.

At Morse, all students are required to place their phones into a Yondr pouch at the beginning of the school day at tables set up by the school each morning. The students keep the locked pouches containing their phones or other devices throughout the day.

After the final bell, they head back to the tables to unlock their pouches. The students’ devices always remain with them, which Hoffman said is appreciated by parents who use GPS to track their child’s location.

The study group didn’t insist that SAD 75 adopt the Yondr product, but Hoffman said educators at Morse High School are very happy with the pouches and have called them a “game changer.” He said the equipment would cost SAD 75 about $50,000.

“It seems like they’ve created a wheel that works, and why should we try and reinvent it?” he said, adding that Morse students also resisted the change initially.

School board members seemed receptive to the proposal. The board referred the matter to its Policy Committee, instructing it to draft a proposed policy to be voted on by the full board at a later meeting.

“This is something we need to do, and it’s timely,” said school board member Mary Hobson, of Topsham.

The school board acknowledged that some students might regard the proposed restriction as an unjust punishment. They also noted that some students might try to evade a new policy, such as by bringing a second, hidden phone to school.

Still, a student representative to the board, Mt. Ararat senior Lydia Hiltz, said she thinks the proposed policy change is a good idea that fellow students would get used to.

“My position aligns more with that of the adults,” Hiltz told the board. “Obviously this policy, if it’s enacted next year, will not affect me. But if I was still in school, I know … in the long term, it would extremely benefit me.”

Harpswell Anchor reporter J. Craig Anderson is a veteran journalist whose work has earned state, regional and national awards. Please send comments or news tips to craig@harpswellanchor.org.