Newfoundland and Labrador’s Citizens Speak Out on Phones in Schools
Department of Education officials collect province-wide input to shape new school cell phone policy
Why was it important for the Newfoundland and Labrador Department of Education to consult its citizens on cell phone usage in schools?
Consultation and engagement are vital for developing strong public policy. As most K-12 students in Newfoundland and Labrador are part of the English public education system, students, teachers, administrators, and students’ families needed to have the opportunity to review the proposed policy and provide input as it was finalized.
Consultation on policy can help strengthen implementation. In this case, feedback led to policy changes which will ultimately support adherence to the Responsible Student Use of Personal Electronic Devices Policy.
What did the engagement data show you about how Newfoundland and Labrador’s citizens felt about cell phones in schools? What surprised you, and what validated your initial views?
The data demonstrated that personal electronic device use in K-12 schools and classrooms interests students, educators, and families in Newfoundland and Labrador.
Educators expressed the need to minimize inappropriate device use during instructional hours. Parents, guardians, and families shared feedback on the impact of devices on student mental health and the need to balance timely communications with their children.
Many senior-grade students indicated that access to their devices during recess and lunch breaks would be helpful as they navigated extracurricular activities, jobs, and communications needs. Leaders considered all feedback when finalizing the policy.
How will the community’s feedback inform the Department of Education’s guidelines for cell phone usage in schools?
The most significant change from the draft policy to final implementation was the allowance for intermediate and senior grade students (grades 7-12) to access and use their personal electronic devices during non-instructional times, such as recess and lunch breaks.
This was informed by a large number of parents and students who indicated that access during that time would support communication and scheduling needs, such as students scheduling rides to and from activities or advising parents and guardians of afterschool schedule changes.
What were the biggest wins for the Department of Education in engaging the public on cell phones? What are your plans for future public engagements?
Public consultation and engagement are important to policy development. The Department of Education was pleased to have such robust input, with over 13,000 responses to the online questionnaire hosted by ThoughtExchange.
As leaders develop further consultation and engagement plans for the K-12 English public education system, they will consider using ThoughtExchange, given the high level of engagement during the consultation on the Responsible Student Use of Personal Electronic Devices Policy.
Which ThoughtExchange features got you the most useful results and why?
The AI Advisor feature was very helpful in extracting deep, multifaceted data from the survey. ThoughtExchange allows users to ask Advisor questions, both qualitative and quantitative, about respondents’ feedback.
By posing simple, conversational-style questions to AI Advisor, we were able to dig into the data further, similar to a dynamic conversation with a data analyst. The AI Advisor function was quick, easy to use, and useful when analyzing the data.
How does ThoughtExchange enhance your ability to hear from your community, understand their priorities, and gather data to influence policies around topics like cell phone usage in schools?
ThoughtExchange allows us to quickly survey many people over a large geographic region. As each region has its own unique challenges and circumstances, ThoughtExchange allows us to understand the multitude of issues at play and consider those issues when developing or finalizing policies. The survey layout and design are user-friendly, which ultimately encourages more participation.
