They represent the future of technology and communication, but cell phones and MP3 players soon may be a thing of the past at West Chicago Community High School.

Superintendent Lee Rieck has asked the school’s attorney to draft a policy banning electronic devices on district property. Community High School District 94 officials are considering the ban because they distract students and because the expensive items often are lost or stolen.

Such a policy would not apply to school-related electronics, like graphing calculators, Principal John Highland said.

Problems have grown as carrying cell phones and MP3 players has become the norm among high school students, he said.

“I think it’s an emerging problem. The more kids that have them, the more likely we are to have issues,” he said. “We’re going to look at (our policy) and come up with some way of modifying it in the future.”

With the advent of cell phones and pagers, many school systems and states passed policies prohibiting them in schools. Perhaps it was the devices’ association with drug dealers or just their annoying habit of going off at the wrong time.

But as cell phones have become ever-present, many schools have loosened their restrictions. Events like the 1999 massacre at Columbine High School near Littleton, Colo., in which two student shooters killed 12 fellow classmates and teachers, raised the question of whether students should have them for emergencies.

Today, District 94 officials are worried the electronics carry more drawbacks than advantages. For example, as companies have begun to combine cell phones and MP3 players into one, teachers find it harder to tell if the student is on the phone or just listening to music.

“The benefits are outweighed by the negatives,” said Josh Chambers, assistant principal for administrative services, who believes banning electronics at school is the best route. “As the items become more powerful, it’s going to become very difficult to determine which have some benefits and which don’t. It’s a difficult situation.”

In addition to the safety issue, studies have shown some students retain information better while listening to music, Chambers said.

The setbacks: phones ringing in class, students engrossed in text messages and the occasional case of a device going missing.

“Overall, thefts are down, but the value (of the items being stolen or lost) has increased,” Chambers said. “We’re talking $200 to $300 of items, and they’re very small, so when they go walking, it quickly adds up in terms of the significance of the theft.”

If the board passes a ban, it will follow a number of other districts that have targeted electronics. Schools in St. Charles, Barrington, Antioch and Naperville have imposed stricter rules on electronic devices while Elgin, Geneva and West Aurora districts have banned them entirely during school hours.

District 94 serves students from West Chicago, Carol Stream, Winfield and parts of Warrenville.