This bill amends the Code of West Virginia to require county boards of education to adopt policies aimed at limiting the use of personal cell phones and other electronic communication devices during instructional periods, except for medical, educational, or emergency purposes. The bill introduces a new section, 18-5-52, which mandates that by August 1, 2025, each county board must implement policies that minimize distractions caused by these devices in classrooms. The policies should emphasize limiting student use of personal devices and may require that such devices be set to "airplane mode" during instruction unless they are being used for approved purposes.

Additionally, the bill outlines that county boards may choose to prohibit all use of personal devices, except for health-related or individualized education plan accommodations. It also stipulates that any existing policies that comply with these new requirements will remain valid as long as they are in effect. Furthermore, the state board is tasked with adopting a model policy by July 1, 2025, which will be based on research regarding the impact of device usage in educational settings. The bill ensures that county boards must make their policies publicly available and allows for emergency use of devices when necessary.

Statutes affected:
Introduced Version: 18-1-1, 18-5-52