Ontario to ban cellphones from classrooms: CP

Ontario is set to announce that cellphones will be banned in classrooms, starting in the next school year.

According to The Canadian Press, the Ford government is set to make the announcement sometime this week.

The province is expected to issue a directive to all public schools for the 2019-20 school year. Many schools already have policies in place that ban students from having phones in the classroom.

The ban would prohibit cellphone use during instructional time. It would be up to individual boards and schools to enforce the rule.

The Canadian Press says their government sources who were not authorized to speak publicly ahead of the announcement say exceptions would be made for when teachers want to use cellphones as part of their lesson, for medical reasons and students with special needs.

A ban on cellphones in the classroom was part of the Progressive Conservatives election platform last year.