Do school phone bans actually work? A new study says not really

To ban or not to ban cellphones in school, that is the perennial question facing parents and educators across the country. 

A new study published in The Lancet lends credence to the latter camp, finding no evidence that restricting student access to cellphones improved either well-being or grades in reading and math. 

The study examined 30 schools in the U.K., 20 of which restricted cellphones in some capacity, 10 which did not. “In restrictive schools, phones were not allowed to be used during the school day for recreational purposes, and were required to be kept off inside bags, stored in lockers, kept in a pouch, handed into the school reception, or phones were not allowed onto the school premises altogether,” the authors wrote. “In permissive schools, phones were permitted to be used at any time or at certain times (e.g., breaks/lunch) and/or in certain zones (e.g., outside).” 

Contrary to popular belief, the researchers found no significant difference in the mental well-being of those students allowed to use their phones compared to those who were not. Importantly, that doesn’t mean cellphones don’t pose problems. The researchers found that the more time students spent on cellphones and social media, the lower their mental well-being. However, banning cellphones and eradicating social media isn’t the answer here.

While plenty of research shows the damage phones and social media can do to our mental health and dwindling attention spans, love them or hate them, cellphones aren’t going anywhere. Educators and administrators are better off putting their energy into helping teenagers navigate a world with cellphones and social media. Learning how to focus despite the pull of a phone in their back pocket will serve students better than coming up with ways to circumvent restrictive phone policies. 

“Reactionary hacks have been pushing the false narrative that social media and smartphones are leading to declining literacy and mental health problems. It’s false, and it’s simply the latest iteration of a long running freak out about the technology and media that young people are using,” writes journalist Taylor Lorenz in User Mag. 

While no one thinks students should be allowed to scroll on their phones all day in class, banning phones outright won’t magically make all problems disappear. If you’ve ever tried to ban a child from doing literally anything, you’ll understand why. 

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