Gov. Kathy Hockle on Thursday pushed through a ban on cellphones in classrooms, saying children should not be distracted by screens during a crisis after parents lashed out at her proposal during a lockdown at an Upper West Side school.
“Following their training and procedures, they need to be focused and supervising the adults at the front of the classroom to direct them to safety,” Hoekl said at a separate news conference in Manhattan. “Police are providing direct instructions on what to do in these situations.”
The governor's statement came in response to questions from The Washington Post about an incident last week at Louis Brandeis High School that sparked outrage from parents who say their children were texting and calling but were not informed by school officials or police.
Education Chancellor David Banks said last week that the department would launch an investigation into why parents were not notified about the completely unfounded threat that a man was locked in a school with a gun.
“I am extremely sorry and apologise to parents who were not contacted in real time. As a school governor and personally as a parent, this is unacceptable,” Banks told reporters.
Haukle also acknowledged Thursday that a lack of communication with parents during the lockdown, which lasted nearly an hour and a half, had been a “shortcoming.”
“I completely agree that all school campuses — pre-school, elementary, middle school and high school — need to have adequate lines of communication in place before a crisis or disruption occurs,” Hoekl said.
“What we can focus on is making sure that the communication plan between parents, police and school districts is strengthened and followed.”
The governor is still working out the details of a statewide policy that would restrict cellphone use in schools.
Governor Banks previously proposed implementing a ban in the city's public schools, but it did not materialize before the start of the new school year.
“While we don't have a formal ban on cell phones, I think there are a number of reasons why we believe cell phones are a significant distraction for students in schools,” he said after the Brandeis High School incident.
Michael Mulgrew, president of the American Teachers Union, told The Washington Post last month that he supports the governor's push for a cellphone ban, but that such a policy should give individual school districts discretion in how they implement it.
The New York State Federation of Teachers, a statewide umbrella organization for teachers unions, is holding a conference in Albany on Friday to discuss the impact of cell phones and social media on children.
UFT The survey was published A survey conducted earlier this week showed that 63% of New York City teachers support a citywide cell phone ban.
