The Tamaqua Area School Board had no hang ups moving toward curbing student cellphone use during the school day.

The board on Tuesday approved the first reading of a revised policy regarding electronic devices, which include cellphones, smartwatches and earbuds or headphones.

The proposed changes would prohibit cellphone and other device use during classes, except under direct teacher supervision, Superintendent Ray Kinder said. Devices will be turned off and placed in “teacher designated spaces.”

The district will be pricing caddies, or similar bins or compartments, where the devices can be placed when entering classrooms or other instructional areas, he said.

A number of teachers in the district already employ caddies in their classrooms, and other districts have been successful using them, too, Kinder said.

“Lunch will be the only time that students will be allowed to utilize their cellphones,” he said.

Board President Larry Wittig asked about cellphones in the elementary schools, and Kinder explained that the policy only affects secondary students, as younger students in the elementary schools don’t have access to their phones during the school day now.

Secondary students have been allowed to carry silenced cellphones and use them during lunch, study halls, passing between classes and in class with supervision under the current policy, which shifted during the pandemic.

Cellphones and other devices have not been allowed in private areas, such as locker rooms, bathrooms, dressing rooms, nurses’ offices, the main office or swimming pool areas.

The administration hopes to take back some academic time with the restricted use of the devices in study halls and even at the end of class periods, which Kinder believes should remain strictly for instruction.

Under the policy revision, cellphones and other devices would only be used in the classroom for education purposes under the teacher’s direction. The other exception would be for medical reasons, such as a diabetic student needing to check an insulin level, Kinder said.

Board member Bryan Miller, who raised concerns about parents being able to reach their child during the day about doctor’s appointments or after school pickups, questioned punishment under the policy.

Kinder said that the district never addressed that in the policy, giving administrators latitude in dealing with specific situations, but students would be made aware of consequences for violations.

The revised policy will come before the board for second reading and final approval next month.

The district will move forward with pricing and purchasing caddies or similar bins to place devices during classes and other instructional time to be ready for the start of the school year, Kinder said.