Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) announced Friday an update of the district’s cell phone regulations for the 2025-2026 school year, primarily increasing the limits on student cellphone use in middle schools.
“This revision reflects current best practices in education and was developed through a collaborative effort involving MCPS staff, students and community members,” Friday’s statement said.
According to current MCPS regulations, elementary school students can only use phones before and after the school day. Middle schoolers can use them before and after the school day, and during instructional time if teachers allow. Cell phone use for middle schoolers during lunch time is up to a school’s principal.
High schoolers can use phones before and after school and during lunch, during instructional time if teachers allow, and between classes if principals allow. Under the current policy, individual middle and high schools and even classrooms can have varying rules on what’s permitted.
According to the Friday announcement, elementary and middle school students will be required to keep their phones and personal devices turned off and put away during classes, lunchtime and transitions between classes beginning with the 2025-2026 school year.
High school students will continue to be able to use their phones during lunch and between classes, but not during instructional time. All students will be allowed to use personal mobile devices on MCPS buses.
The Montgomery County Education Association (MCEA), the local teachers union, passed a resolution in March pushing for stricter cell phone rules, saying the current “uneven application” of cell phone use rules has created “inequitable learning environments across schools.”
The resolution recommended rules based on grade level that are similar to those described in MCPS’s Friday announcement but also recommended several measures to mitigate cell phone use, including the use of phone caddies and lockable cell phone pouches to store the devices.
The school district’s statement concerning the new cell phone regulations doesn’t mention how schools will control cell phone use under the updated rules. Instead, it said students are “expected to manage their devices responsibly, making sure they are turned off and out of sight when use is not permitted.”
In a Monday statement, MCEA applauded the district for establishing a uniform cell phone policy, but noted that concerns remain about enforcing the policy and the impact it could have on classroom dynamics.
According to the updated rules, students who misuse their devices will face consequences that will follow a “progressive approach” to be outlined in the student code of conduct, which the district is currently revising.
“MCEA’s original recommendation included the district providing guidance for staff, including trainings, and establishing consistent cell phone expectations in the classroom, whether that’s through phone caddies, lockable bags, or other systems,” Rainer Kulenkampff, a teacher at Walter Johnson High in Bethesda and co-chair of MCEA’s cell phone policy working group, said in the statement. “Right now, we don’t know what the interplay between students, teachers, and administrators will look like if there are policy violations. The devil is ultimately in the details, and we’re looking forward to learning more about those details in the coming weeks.”
Students who need access to their cell phones for medical and learning accommodations will continue to have access to their devices, the statement said.
The changes in regulations follow a Feb. 20 school board meeting during which the Montgomery County school board heard feedback on the district’s “Away All Day” cell phone pilot program implemented last fall in several middle and high schools. At that time, two MCPS schools said that implementing more strict cell phone policies resulted in fewer fights and less distractions.
Friday’s announcement follows statements by the board and MCPS staff at the February meeting that they would be moving forward with adjusting the implementation of the district’s current cell phone policy.
