If you’re a boomer, Gen X, or millennial, your phone was probably connected to a wall in your house for most, if not all, of your schooling days.
But now, 72% of US high school teachers say phone distraction has become a major problem, not to mention growing concerns about the harms of social media.
But what happens when you take phones away?
Some schools in New York have tried not just classroom, but daylong bans. They initially struggled with angry students and protests, but ultimately found positive changes, including:
- Higher test scores and grades
- Increased attendance at after-school events
- More engagement in the classroom and among students at lunch
One principal told Bloomberg that some students secretly thanked her for the ban and the improved focus they achieved.
Now, NYC — the largest school district in the US — may implement a ban that would affect 1.1m+ students across 1.8k campuses, and the entire state may follow.
Similar bans will take effect in January 2025 for Los Angeles Unified, a district with 429k students, and the state of Virginia, affecting 1.2m+ students.
What are the challenges?
Apart from students’ ire? A glaring issue is the epidemic of violence in American school systems and the worry that in the event of a shooting, students would have no way to alert parents or call for help.
However, experts say phones don’t actually help, as students’ phones distract during emergencies, too.
Another challenge is putting the burden of policing bans on teachers, who may face backlash.
One solution? Requiring students to place their phones in pouches that, at day’s end, unlock with a magnetic tool, which can be kept in offices and individual classrooms for emergencies, too.
They work on adults, BTW
One such pouch is made by Yondr, a startup founded by Graham Dugoni in 2014 after he saw music festival attendees filming a drunk man without his consent.
They’ve since made their way into comedy shows, concerts, and other performances where artists would prefer people be present as opposed to documenting everything. It’s an alternative to confiscating phones because you still have yours, you just can’t annoy everyone with it.
