They already do. Accessing certain websites is prohibited (e.g. pornographic stuff), as is filming other students without their consent.
A reasonable compromise would be a "scholastic firewall" - the children can have their phones, but can only access educational material on school grounds and not facebook/youtube/twitter/instagram/etc.
>Children that want to information dive on a specific subject are free to do so at home
Because as we well know, school is not an appropriate place for learning!
I kid, of course, but I can't help but feel all this ban would accomplish in practical terms is punishing the curious and nerdy disproportionately.
There are computers with access to the internet at school. They don't have full internet access, they have the scholastic firewall you speak of.
This thread is madness. Instead of a cell phone ban, it's like we are talking about all computers being banned from school.
Authority figures in school do not have the power or authority to watch over how the children use their phones. Children that want to information dive on a specific subject are free to do so at home, where their parents can (assuming they are willing to) control what content is accessed and for how long.