By Movieguide® Contributor
Many U.S. teachers find that cellphone use in class is an annoying distraction.
According to a 2023 study by Pew Research, high school teachers have the most issues with cellphones, as 72% say they are problematic. In overall K-12, one-third say cellphones are a problem.
In the last few years, many school districts have taken the leap to restrict phone use. Over 80% of K-12 teachers say their school has some kind of cellphone policy, but high school teachers (60%) say their phone policy is hard to enforce. Middle school teachers (62%) report that it’s very/somewhat easy to enforce their phone policies.
Most U.S. teens (95%) say they have access to a smartphone.
Amid recent policies and legislation, like New York Gov. Kathy Hochul’s efforts to ban phones in NY schools, most teens view their cellphone use positively. And a lot of parents do, too.
Cellphone Bans
Seven-in-10 teens from 13-17 believe their phones offer more good than harm. Less than half (45%) say phones make it easier to succeed in school, while 23% say phones make it harder, and 30% say smartphones don’t make a difference.
“As much as I think that digital media has tremendous benefits for youth, we know that it can be incredibly distracting,” said Lucía Magis-Weinberg, an assistant professor of psychology at the University of Washington who is preparing to study cellphone restriction policies in Washington schools. “We know children and adolescents need these caregiving figures who are parents or teachers to help self-regulate, and part of self-regulation is controlling the bad habits we have developed around technology.”
Related: Most Americans Support Limiting Cell Phones in Schools, New Study Finds
Merve Lapus said, “We just know that in the short term, it has been very much helpful for schools to have these bans because of one less thing to have to juggle. How do we build transferable skills so that when you get that phone back, you’re making healthy decisions in the way that you use it?”
While teachers and legislators see the problems phones can cause as far as classroom experience and learning, parents seem to be most concerned about safety.
In a recent survey by the National Parents Union, over 75% of parents said they want their kids to keep their phones in case of emergency. When asked what kind of phone policies they’d want, 59% said they’d like their kids’ school to “allow students to keep their phones in their backpack or bag (not locked up) as long as they don’t take them out and keep them on silent” so that their kids can still focus but have access to their phones if needed.
Read Next: Churches Make Youth Events Phone Free, and It’s Working
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