Fully Phone-free schools

77% of public schools in the United States claim to ‘ban’ phones - but in the majority of cases this simply means that the phones are not allowed only during class time. What does this look like? Kids in middle and high school roaming the halls with their eyes glued to smartphone screens.

 A study by Common Sense Media found that 97 percent of teenagers used cell phones during the school day. And another study by the Pew Research Center found that 72 percent of U.S. high school teachers and 33 percent of middle school teachers said cell phone distractions were a major problem in classrooms.

A Promising Example

Meanwhile, evidence is mounting that truly eliminating smartphones from schools produces positive results. Recent reports out of Norway, where the government banned smartphones from schools, show a number of positive results including:

  • improved mental health

  • steep drops in bullying

  • notable increases in GPAs.

A Potential State-wide Approach

Govenor Gavin Newsom has called for a more rigorous smart phone ban in California schools, and the PUSD School Board is already exploring how to make this a reality in Piedmont schools. Piedmont Unplugged is in full support of these actions!

Phones In Class

Most schools claim that they ban phones, but this usually just means that students aren’t supposed to take their phone out of their pocket during class.

Research shows that most students do use their phones during class time. They also use them during lunchtime, free periods, and breaks between classes––times when students could and should be interacting with their classmates face-to-face.

The Bottom Line

The only way to get students’ minds off their phones during the school day is to require all students to put their phones (and other devices that can send or receive texts) into a phone locker or locked pouch at the start of the day. Schools that have gone phone-free always seem to report that it has improved the culture, making students more attentive in class and more interactive with one another. Published studies back them up.