Louisiana

‘Kids are talking to each other.’ Teachers, students embrace Louisiana’s cell phone ban

Published

3 months ago

October 9, 2024

‘Kids are talking to each other.’ Teachers, students embrace Louisiana’s cell phone ban

While planning a field trip to a student-athlete leadership conference in September, Kassie Binkley doubted that her high schoolers could make it through the day without their cellphones, as their school district now requires.

So she was stunned when the teens not only survived the phone-less trip — they seemed to love it.

“My kids played games while the rest of the kids picked up their phones during breaks,” the Caldwell Parish High School physical education teacher said. “They were just more engaged the whole time.”

Kassie Binkley (in white), a physical education teacher at Caldwell Parish High School, plays a game with students during class on Friday, October 4, 2024.

PHOTO COURTESY STACY MORGAN

Other educators — and even some students — are reporting similar positive experiences since a new state law took effect this school year requiring students to stow their phones away during the school day. Louisiana joins several other states that have recently restricted students’ cellphone use, citing growing research on its negative impact on kids’ brain development and mental health.

When Louisiana’s law passed in May, some families and lawmakers were concerned the ban would make it harder for parents to reach their children during emergencies, and districts scrambled to figure out how to enforce the new restriction.

But a few months into the semester,

“Kids are paying attention in class,” said Nicki McCann, superintendent of Caldwell Parish Schools. “They’re talking to each other.”

Emerging research suggests that too much screen time can harm developing brains, making kids more likely to suffer from depression and anxiety, shortening their attention spans and making them more impulsive.

Despite this, smartphone use among teens and tweens has skyrocketed in the last decade, with more than half of U.S. children getting the devices by age 11, according to a 2022 survey.

Now, educators say the phone restriction is helping some students flourish in the classroom.

“I’m seeing things that I have not seen in my 25 years teaching,” said Tristen Guillory, an Ascension Parish algebra teacher. “Just the level at which these kids are learning.”

An overall improvement

For many educators, getting rid of phones has made their jobs easier.

Under the previous state law, students could have cellphones in school, just not use them. Teachers had to try to catch kids furtively using their phones — which wasn’t easy.

Students were “taking them to the bathrooms, cheating in class, texting parents to come get them,” said McCann, the Caldwell superintendent. “It was just crazy.”

The new law says phones and other electronic devices must be “properly stowed away” or “prohibited from being turned on” during school. Districts must decide how to enact the law, including whether students can keep their turned-off phones in their backpacks or must turn them in to school staff.

In Caldwell, high schoolers now must keep their phones in their cars or hand them over to the front office before heading to class. The phones are stored in clear bags during the day and handed back before dismissal.

Binkley, the phys ed teacher, said the new policy has created consistency across classrooms and made it easier for staff to enforce.

“It used to be an argument,” she said. The new rule “gets rid of all the discrepancy.”

NO.cellphones1748.JPG — Students at Caldwell Parish High School pick their phones up at the end of the school day on Friday, October 4, 2024.

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PHOTO COURTESY STACY MORGAN

Ascension Parish requires kids to keep their phones off and in their bags during the day. Guillory, the algebra teacher, said she’s seen a marked change under the new policy — particularly in the lunchroom, where she had expected to catch the most infractions.

“I figured it was going to be a hot mess,” she said, but instead students are following the new rules and seem to have embraced the ban. “Although they were resistant at first to the idea, I think a lot of them are relieved now.”

In East Baton Rouge, one of the state’s largest school systems, spokesman Perry Robinson said the district initially experienced a spike in infractions under the new policy this fall, though the number of students suspended for breaking the rules multiple times has remained roughly the same.

Like Ascension, the district requires students to keep their phones off and in their bags for the duration of the school day.

“Once parents heard about the law, a lot of them had conversations about it with their kids,” Robinson said. Now, “everybody is complying.”

Members of the Teachers’ Advisory Council, a group of educators who advise the state education department on policy issues, also praised the ban at a recent meeting.

Students “no longer can text mom, ‘Hey, I forgot my gym clothes,’” said Regena Beard, a teacher at Copper Mill Elementary in Zachary, adding that the change will force students to “become more responsible.”

Allison McLellan, an English teacher at Belle Chasse High School, said getting rid of phones has helped kids’ social skills.

“They need to know how to be people,” she said. “They need to know how to make eye contact, how to have conversations.”

Students embrace going phone-less

Some students are also on board with the ban.

Sophomore Charlotte DeClouet, who has experienced multiple bomb threats at her Lafayette high school, was initially worried she wouldn’t be able to contact her parents during an emergency. But her fears were eased after the school allowed kids to keep their phones on them as long as they’re off and in their bags.

“At the beginning, it was kind of weird and everyone wanted their phones back,” she said, but now the ban is helping students stay on task. “It created a more productive learning environment.”

Anna Kate Shaw, a senior at Caldwell High School, said she’s finished three books since the start of the school year — something she didn’t think she would have done before phones were banned.

“A lot of my classmates and I were really upset” about the ban, she said. “But now, we’ve all noticed we’re a lot more focused in class.”

Still a work in progress

Still, there have been some hiccups as districts figure out what works.

Bernita Dunbar, an educator in Concordia Parish, said her district has struggled to enforce the ban, which she attributed to schools not adequately informing students about the new policy.

“In one class, I actually told the kids, ‘You all know this is Louisiana law, right?’” she said during the teacher council meeting. “And they were like, ‘No, we didn’t know.’”

Shaw said the front office at her school sometimes misplaces students’ phones, adding that some of her friends have had to wait a day or more before the school is able to locate their phones.

“I don’t really like how our school system executes” the ban, she said.

NO.cellphones1702.JPG — Kassie Binkley (in white), a physical education teacher at Caldwell Parish High School, stretches with students during class on Friday, October 4, 2024.

PHOTO COURTESY STACY MORGAN

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And, of course, not all students are thrilled about having to relinquish their phones.

“It’s always mixed reviews with kids,” said Guillory, the Ascension Parish teacher. “Some people will say, ‘Oh, it’s dumb.’”

But Binkley said the only complaint she’s heard is from students who relied on their phones to keep track of the time. Thankfully, she said, that problem was an easy fix.

“I was like, ‘Oh my goodness, we really don’t have a lot of functioning clocks,’” she said. “Most teachers have gotten clocks for their rooms now. But it was kind of funny.”

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Louisiana

Miss Louisiana 2024 heads to Miss America 2025

Published

15 minutes ago

December 28, 2024

Press Room

Miss Louisiana 2024 heads to Miss America 2025

MONROE, La. (KNOE) – Miss Louisiana flew out from the Monroe Regional Airport to the Miss America competition in Orlando, Florida on Friday, Dec. 27.

Louisiana Tech University student and Texas native, Olivia Grace George will be competing against 50 other titleholders for the Miss America crown.

Before competing for Miss Louisiana in June 2024, she was 2023’s Miss Louisiana Watermelon Festival.

George said this coming week will be busy and fun-filled with lots of events on the schedule.

“I’m excited for the competition, but I’m just excited for the overall journey ahead,” said George.

During the Miss America competition, George will be performing a jazz dance routine for her talent.

George’s community service initiative is called “Education is Key – Knowledge Empowers Youth”.

“I hope to share with students the importance of education and how our education is a key that can unlock many wonderful doors,” said George.

George said she hopes to learn from the experience of Miss America.

“I hope to bring back that love and that gratitude and appreciation, and share it with the state of Louisiana and continue to support and love the state of Louisiana to the best of my ability,” said George.

George said no matter the outcome of the competition, she is grateful for the experience.

“Ever since I was a little girl, I’ve always wanted to go to Miss America, and so now that it’s actually happening, it’s just so surreal and incredible,” said George.

The Miss America preliminary competition takes place on Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025 at 7 p.m.

The finals portion of the competition will air on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025 at 7 p.m.

Click here for more information on where to access the live stream.

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Louisiana

Bird flu virus likely mutated within a Louisiana patient, CDC says

Published

13 hours ago

December 27, 2024

Press Room

Bird flu virus likely mutated within a Louisiana patient, CDC says

A genetic analysis suggests the bird flu virus mutated inside a Louisiana patient who contracted the nation’s first severe case of the illness, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said this week.

Scientists believe the mutations may allow the virus to better bind to receptors in the upper airways of humans — something they say is concerning but not a cause for alarm.

Michael Osterholm, a University of Minnesota infectious disease researcher, likened this binding interaction to a lock and key. To enter a cell, the virus needs to have a key that turns the lock, and this finding means the virus may be changing to have a key that might work.

“Is this an indication that we may be closer to seeing a readily transmitted virus between people? No,” Osterholm said. “Right now, this is a key that sits in the lock, but it doesn’t open the door.”

The virus has been causing sporadic, mostly mild illnesses in people in the U.S., and nearly all of those infected worked on dairy or poultry farms.

The Louisiana patient was hospitalized in critical condition with severe respiratory symptoms from bird flu after coming in contact with sick and dead birds in a backyard flock. The person, who has not been identified, is older than 65 and has underlying medical problems, officials said earlier this month.

The CDC stressed there has been no known transmission of the virus from the Louisiana patient to anyone else. The agency said its findings about the mutations were “concerning,” but the risk to the general public from the outbreak “has not changed and remains low.”

Still, Osterholm said, scientists should continue to follow what’s happening with mutations carefully.

“There will be additional influenza pandemics and they could be much worse than we saw with COVID,” he said. “We know that the pandemic clock is ticking. We just don’t know what time it is.”

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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

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Louisiana

‘Jesus was an immigrant,’ Louisiana activists say amid international immigration led population increase

Published

21 hours ago

December 27, 2024

Press Room

‘Jesus was an immigrant,’ Louisiana activists say amid international immigration led population increase

NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – New census numbers show international immigration was a major driving factor of population growth across the United States, contributing to Louisiana’s first population increase in years.

Nationally, immigration accounted for 84% of the nation’s population growth between last July and this July.

In Louisiana, the population grew by just under 10,000. The numbers reveal that about 23,000 more people moved into Louisiana from other countries than people from Louisiana to other countries.

Louisiana lost a net of 17,000 people to other American states.

On the day after Christmas, immigration activists gathered at the steps of City Hall to send a message to Louisiana leaders.

Rachel Taber with Unión Migrante served as an interpreter for Alfredo Salacar of Mexico.

“For all of the anti-immigrant politicians that are supposedly Christian, we want to remind them that Jesus himself was an immigrant,” Salacar said.

Immigration activists said Jesus didn’t come from the White House, a palace or a mansion along St. Charles Avenue; he was born in a stable as his migrant parents who were forced to flee wandered a foreign country.

Taber said many undocumented families who’ve settled in New Orleans had to flee political tyranny, violence and poverty.

“Louisiana is an incredible place everyone wants to visit because of our rich gumbo of people who made a life here: Cajuns, Sicilians, Germans, Irish, Spanish Islenos, Jewish people, resilient Africans and Indigenous people who kept their culture alive despite so much injustice. This recent wave from Central and Latin America is just the newest flavor to add to the family recipe,” Taber said.

Unión Migrante is fighting against racial profiling and the separation of families.

“That’s not a good use of our resources. We want to see families remaining together,” Taber said.

During Thursday (Dec. 26) night’s Christmas Posada and vigil, the local immigration activist group called on Louisiana leaders to take a more pro-immigration stance. At the Hispanic cultural celebration, they also demanded the federal oversight of the New Orleans Police Department continue.

“We’re not criminals. We are an asset,” said Yareli Andino. “If just one opportunity would be given, I think a lot of things could change.”

This holiday season, they are asking people to open their hearts and homes.

“We contribute, we work, we’re here. We rebuild this community after every hurricane comes and destroys it. We work in your hotels. We work in your homes. I personally work in construction, and I’ve been in the homes of many of these same elected officials,” said Salacar. “We know that threats are coming our way… We have a human right to migrate and it’s disgusting to see politicians not only making money off of immigrants but turning us into a political pawn for their own ambition.”

Taber said, “Taylor Swift weekend, the Super Bowl, and Mardi Gras would not be possible” without immigrants.

Members of Unión Migrante said Jesus’ life is an example of empathy, compassion, peace and humility, displaying a deep love towards our neighbors and those most vulnerable.

In a statement, Sgt. Kate Stegall said, “The Louisiana State Police regularly partners with local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies to enforce laws throughout Louisiana. Additionally, LSP Troopers are assigned to federal task forces, where they focus on enforcing federal laws. In these collaborative efforts, Troopers uphold a high standard of professionalism and ensure respectful and effective interactions.”

In a ride-along earlier this month, ICE told Fox 8 these alleged raids and indiscriminate sweeps couldn’t be further from the truth.

ICE representatives said the federal agency is prioritizing criminals and those who pose a threat to national security.

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