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The U.S. Department of Education will release new guidelines on cell phone use in schools in October, as a growing number of states and localities adopt bans across the country. In an interview Friday, Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona said its important to strike a careful balance when it comes to these policies. “It’s important that we communicate impacts on students over-reliance on cell phones, but also ways that technology, whether it’s cell phones or other devices, can be used to enhance learning,” Cardona said. Cardona said that rather than imposing a federal mandate, these guidelines are intended to help states and localities craft their own policies.”At this point, we don’t feel that there’s a need for a federal mandate,” Cardona said. “That doesn’t mean that down the road, if things change, that we wouldn’t want to have a stronger perspective on this.”Supporters say schools with cell phone bans have seen improved student focus and mental health, as well as a reduction in bullying.A coalition of advocates wrote a letter to Cardona last fall asking the U.S. Department of Education to release a phone-free school advisory. Since then, more states have gotten on board. “We’re seeing states across the country really starting to look into this, and we expect this to continue growing, because this is a problem that can be solved, said Ashwin Verghese, communications director of the nonprofit Fairplay, which signed onto the letter.An analysis from the health policy group KFF found at least seven states have adopted policies that ban or restrict cell phone use in schools and similar legislation has been introduced in fourteen states. Education departments in six other states have issued recommended policies or piloted programs. The issue has also gotten the attention of Congress. A bipartisan group of lawmakers is backing legislation that would require the U.S. Department of Education to conduct research into the effects of cell phone use in K-12 classrooms and its impact on students mental health and academic performance.I think there’s a hole in the data, and we need to gather that data so that we know that we’re making the right decisions, said Rep. Bruce Westerman (AR-04), who is sponsoring the bill. The legislation would also provide $5 million in each of the next five years for a pilot program. It would help fund secure containers to store cell phones during school hours.According to a bill summary, there would be exceptions for certain students, including those with health conditions, and participating schools would have a communication system in place with first responders in case of an emergency.In a National Parents Union survey earlier this year, a majority supported limits on cell phones while allowing kids to maintain some access during the school day, primarily to communicate during emergencies. Most parents believe school districts and individual schools should set these policies, rather than federal or state governments.