According to a Pew Research Center report released as more and more schools consider banning smartphones, cell phones and high schools cannot be mixed.
One of the largest school districts in the US, Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), voted on Tuesday to ban cell phones and social media during the school day. Due to their addictive nature, the New York Governor, Kathy Hochul, has called for legislation to ban the use of smartphones in schools.
Recently, laws banning or restricting smartphone use in schools have been passed in three states. In 2023, Florida was the first to do so.
According to a Pew study, 72% of high school teachers surveyed stated that smartphones distract students in the classroom. According to the surveyed teachers, 82% of K-12 schools and districts in the United States have established cell phone policies; however, in 30% of the schools with the policies, teachers find it difficult to enforce the rules.
According to the survey, 6% of elementary school teachers and 33% of middle school teachers complained about handheld gadgets’ overbearing and attention-grabbing nature.
It may come as no surprise that students disagree that smartphones are a distraction. Seven in ten students aged between 13 and 17 stated that using a phone in class usually has more positive effects than negative ones.
45% of the teens said using a smartphone improves their educational experiences, 23% of the students claimed it makes learning harder, and 30% of the students did not notice a difference. Not all the restrictions are the same: Some schools allow students to use their phones during lunch and between classes, while other schools do not permit the use of phones in the school building.
Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb signed a bill earlier this year requiring school districts to restrict cell phone use in the classroom. In May, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine signed a similar bill mandating every school district establish an official policy prohibiting cell phone use during school hours.
Washington, Kansas, Oklahoma, Vermont, and Connecticut have all introduced similar bills.
