Hillsborough County Public Schools is the latest district in the Tampa Bay region to restrict cellphone use for students.
In the new school year, students must silence and stow away their devices, unless a teacher or staff member allows phone use for educational purposes.
The district policy does allow for some exceptions.
High school students will be permitted to use their phones during lunch.
Students with special needs who need their phones as part of their Individualized Education Plan are exempt from the restrictions. That also goes for students who need to monitor health or medical conditions on their phones as well.
Individual schools will have some flexibility on how they want to impose restrictions. Principals can implement more restrictive conditions.
And principals at middle and elementary schools may choose to let students use their phones during lunch period.
Some teachers may already have rules against cellphones in their classrooms, but the new policy now applies the rules district-wide.
Hillsborough's decision comes after Pinellas and Pasco county schools passed their own restrictions in June. The moves are part of an effort to comply with a Florida law passed last year.
Other parts of the law require school boards to adopt policies to teach students the effects of social media on social, emotional and physical well-being.
Another provision also bans students from accessing social media through internet provided by the school district.
As districts across Florida start implementing restrictions, debates have centered largely on how to balance school control with student freedom.
Hillsborough school board members alluded to students using their devices for bullying, recording school fights, cheating and sending explicit photos.
"There's so many issues that are occurring with the phones, so I believe we need to have a more restrictive policy," board member Nadia Combs said.
But school officials also acknowledged that phones are a routine part of life, as well as academics. Parents may text their children throughout the day, and students also use phones for research, classroom activities and student government elections.
"There are various ways that phones can appropriately be used, but we want to prevent the inappropriate use of phones," said Deputy Superintendent of Academics and Transformation Shay McRae.
Florida was the first state to institute a ban on phones during class time, according to a report by the website Education Week. Other states are considering similar measures to curb distractions in the classroom.
