As students across the region return to class over the next week, local school districts are taking steps to keep cell phones out of the classroom.

Many of the districts had planned changes even before the state last week released new recommendations for restricting cell phone use. Others are now reviewing their policies.

For example, in Stonington, middle school students will keep their cell phones in locked pouches during the day, while Waterford High School classrooms will have pouches hanging on the walls for students to store their phones.

Lyme-Old Lyme Middle School has a "Bell to Bell, No Cell" mantra.

Other school districts, including Groton and New London, also have cell phone restrictions in place, but will review the state’s new guidance.

The state Board of Education recently issued recommendations that restrict cell phone use in school for elementary, middle and high school students to “ensure student engagement in learning, support emotional well-being, and strengthen students’ interpersonal skills, peer interaction, and social communication.”

While an appropriate and balanced use of technology can help “personalize and accelerate” student learning, the policy guidance notes, the U.S. Surgeon General’s advisory “highlights the concerning relationship between excessive, unrestricted social media use and increased mental health challenges in youth.”

Smartphones can distract students and interfere with their learning and in-person interactions, the guidance notes.

For elementary school students, the policy recommends removing cell phones from classrooms and encouraging students to interact.

The policy also recommends removing cell phones from middle school classrooms, pointing out that middle school students are “particularly vulnerable to the negative effects of excessive personal technology use,” have difficulty with impulse control, and have more independence during the day to potentially use cell phones. But the policy also points out that middle school students see cell phones as “a rite of passage.”

The state Board of Education also recommends cell phone restrictions for high school students but notes that the students may be ready at this stage to limit their own use of cell phones and responsibly use technology to be prepared for once they graduate.

The recommendations note that keeping cell phones turned off and stored away allows students to focus on their school work.

The policy also recommends schools outline expectations for high school students in the student Code of Conduct, as the likelihood of “inappropriate and potential illegal use of technology” increases in high school, including “accessing and sharing inappropriate content and cyberbullying.”

East Lyme

Superintendent Jeffrey Newton said the district’s policy is aligned with the state recommendations. The policy specifies phones may not be used during instructional time, except as specifically permitted by instructional staff.

“We will continue to assess private technology usage and if we find a need to do so the Board of Education will adjust policy as necessary,” he said.

Groton

Groton already restricts cell phone use for students in kindergarten through 8th grade and in the classrooms for high school students. The regulations outline disciplinary steps for rules violations.

In the middle school, students may face additional discipline if they use the cell phone to “compromise academic integrity, signal others, or otherwise violate school conduct rules of the student or the confidentiality/privacy rights of another individual.”

The high school policy says that students can “responsibly, safely, and respectfully” use cell phones in the halls during passing time and in the cafeteria, but must put them away in class.

Groton Superintendent of Schools Susan Austin said the Board of Education Policy Committee and school administrators will review the state guidelines to see if any modifications are needed.

Austin said some parents want their child to have a cell phone for safety reasons, with many families tracking their children. But cell phones also create concerns about issues such as cyberbullying and inappropriate use of artificial intelligence, she said.

LEARN

Katherine Ericson, executive director of LEARN, said regional education agency does not currently have a formal cell phone policy, but each school has its own rules.

She said the Regional Multicultural Magnet School in New London has an expectation that students do not bring phones to school, unless families seek an exception.

The Marine Science Magnet High School in Groton tried out a no phone in class or restrooms rule last year, which was well received by staff and students and will continue this year, Ericson said.

She said students have clear rules for use of phones at Three Rivers Middle College, a transitional environment with students taking both high school and college-level courses.

Lyme-Old Lyme

School district Director of Communications and Marketing Bridget Compagno said phones are not allowed at the elementary school. At the middle school, they must be kept in backpacks or lockers for the entire school day. At the high school, cell phones are only to be used during lunch, with juniors and seniors allowed to use their phones during study halls.

Montville

The Board of Education is expected to meet on Sept. 17 and discuss possible revisions of its policy.

The current policy says students may have cell phones on school grounds, but must keep them off and stored away during the school day. There are exceptions if the teacher allows a student to use a cell phone, the device is part of the student’s individualized education program, or if there is an emergency.

New London

The school district does not bar students from bringing personal phones into school, though it prohibits their use during classroom time, unless specifically permitted by an instructor.

Even when allowed to use phones, students cannot use them to engage in cyber-bullying, access pornography or gain access to unauthorized district resources.

Board of Education President Elaine Maynard-Adams said she and her colleagues were waiting until the state Board of Education issued its latest guidance on cell phone use before revisiting the current policy, which it will now do.

Norwich

Acting Superintendent Susan Lessard sent a one-page middle school policy governing the use of electronic devices, cellphones, earphones and headphones to parents Thursday and plan to review the policy with students on the first day of school Thursday.

Under the policy cell phone use in school is prohibited by all students during the school day and students must keep their cellphones in their lockers.

It lists a range of actions that staff could take for violations, including confiscating the phone and returning it at the end of the school day, contacting parents and on the fourth offense, requiring the student to turn over the phone at the start of each day.

Elementary students are not allowed to use cell phones.

Norwich Free Academy

Academy spokesman Michael O’Farrell said the school already is in compliance with the state recommendations for high school.

The school tells students to put phones away during class and allows teachers to establish classroom guidelines to follow.

NFA Head of School Nathan Quesnel said the school expects students to put their phones away when directed, but it is also appropriate to offer a time in classes to allow students to check their phones.The school also permits students to use phones during passing, lunch and study halls.

Preston

Superintendent Roy Seitsinger said the new state recommendations on middle schools mirror the rules he already has in place regarding cellphones. He does not anticipate needing to make any changes

Stonington

After a vote by the Board of Education in April, middle school students in Stonington this year will keep their cell phones off and locked in Yondr pouches, which block cell signals, all day.

The school system was part of a University of Connecticut research study of adolescent mental health and social media use, and will be a part of the next phase of the study that looks at relationships and communication, cyberbullying, hate speech, and news and media literacy, among other topics.

According to Stonington’s draft cell phone policy, high school students cannot use cell phones during instruction time, but teachers can decide to allow students to use them if it contributes to learning. Students are allowed to use cell phones during some times of the day, including passing time and lunch.

The policy spells out that students cannot photograph, video or record other students or staff members without their permission.

At Deans Mill and West Vine Street elementary schools, students need to keep their cell phones off and in their locker during the day and off while riding the bus. Students can ask to use the main office phone if they need to reach their family.

The policy states that, for safety reasons, students can have phones for before or after school activities.

Waterford

Waterford Superintendent of Schools Thomas Giard III said the schools system has had a policy in place for several years that prohibits cell phone use during instructional time.

Elementary and middle school students are expected to keep their phones off all day. Elementary students must keep them in their backpacks, while middle schoolers leave them in lockers.

High school students are the only ones allowed limited use of their cell phones, but only outside of instructional time. During instructional time, students are expected to turn phones off and place them in their backpacks or designated locations in the classroom.

This year, high school classrooms will feature big pouches that will hang on the walls and which students can put their phones in if they don’t have a backpack.

Claire Bessette, Carrie Czerwinski, Daniel Drainville, John Penney and Elizabeth Regan contributed to this report.