GOV. KATHY HOCHUL: New York is banning cell phones in schools and standing up for kids

I have been mom longer than I was governor, so I find it difficult to protect my children – my own and yours.

That is why, as the first Governor of Mama in New York, I led a nation last year in taking over the addicts that run Feeds on social media. And now, we take another bold step: becoming the largest country in a country that limits cell phones in K-12 schools throughout the school day.

Last year I spent traveling over New YorkTalking to everyone, from moms and dad to a teacher, a student, a principal – from northern country to Long Island, I heard the same: cell phones hurt our children.

Teenagers spend more than a quarter of their time at school on phones, a new study finds

One conversation that I will never forget happened in the library, sitting in a circle with students. They opened up about all the pressure and stress they feel every day – how they look, are their clothes cool, if they are excluded from fun. They carried so much anxiety. How could they focus on the class with all this in mind and the constant notifications that buzz in their pockets?

I also heard from a teacher who would say, “We can’t compete anymore. We just can’t compete with screens. We lose a battle to connect with our students.” They want to build relationships with their students. They want to teach. But their children are glued to their phones, distracted, anxious and separate.

And I heard from my parents who would talk to me about how their children retreat and overwhelm because of the constant bombing of negativity from their smartphones.

Restricting mobile approaches could help students classes, social skills and early development, experts say

The facts speak for themselves. Ninety and five percent of teenagers have smartphones. On average, they receive 250 notifications. I can’t focus on anything else because they are so afraid that they will miss something. Even our kids know it’s too much. One young woman told me, “You have to save us from yourself.” I knew it really thought. And I knew I had to act.

I understand that the legitimate fear that parents feel is being lost by losing their direct contact line with their children in case of emergency. But while I was traveling all over the country, I heard from and from the implementation of the law Who told me that there was a massive victim in a terrible event, the last thing you want is your child who has scored for their cellphone. This distraction may mean that they are not sure, because they have lost the focus on the person in the front of the room dressed to secure them safely.

So, I knew we couldn’t take half of the measures. Our kids should have been bold to us. Our teachers We should have been determined. And our parents asked us to act. That’s exactly what we did. And I stopped firmly for this.

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Starting from this fall, we will not have a cell phone in the baby’s hand from the moment they arrive at school until they leave. No more memory instead of mathematics. No more movement through science. Instead, children will be able to focus, hire and only be children.

People ask me why this question is so important. It’s simple: I want laughter in the corridors again. I want to hear the right voices in the gym class. I want our children to make eye contact and talk to each other face to face. I want teachers to be free to learn again. And I want to create an environment where children can actually learn and only be children.

Our children ‘ mental health is on the line. And I will not release social media and great technological companies to dictate their well -being. Because of this, I told them last year that it was enough. You cannot continue to bomb our children with your addictive, harmful algorithms. And now, we are returning our classrooms and returning children to childhood.

No other state does what we do here in New York. I will never give up when it comes to what is best for our children, because your family is my struggle. I said that on the first day, and I think that’s the same today.

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So, I can proudly say that the next generation of leaders grows up here in New York. A generation that will be more focused, grounded and more related to the world around them.

This is the last generation of New York students to grow up with the classroom phones. And that’s a good thing. Because from now on our children will learn and grow, not clicking and moving. Other states should follow our leadership.