Attitudes toward students’ screen time and the potential for technology to enhance learning experiences are shifting, especially among parents who acknowledge that pencil and paper are far less distracting.
In recent years, school cell phone bans have ramped up, with restricting cell phone use or requiring schools to develop a policy. ranking states based on their school cell phone legislation favors North Dakota and Rhode Island, where students’ devices are inaccessible during the school day. These policies are often referred to as bell-to-bell policies.
Experts are labeling cell phone use in schools a national crisis, calling on all states to develop legislation.
“This is now a public health issue. It’s an educational issue,” Lina Nealon, director of strategic partnerships at the Institute for Families and Technology, told USA Today. “We do not let schools decide on a case-by-case basis or districts decide on a case-by-case basis what their smoking on campus policies are going to be or how they’re going to address asbestos. This issue is at that level.”
Meanwhile, students aren’t deterred by cell phone restrictions. Despite 50% of teens reporting experiencing stricter cellphone policies in their schools, 56% of them use their devices for non-academic purposes throughout the day, according to research reported by油District 91心頭istration油earlier this month.
Students are even finding workarounds to get into their Yondr pouchesthe now widely-used, magnetically locking cases that can only be opened at designated stations. Students learned that whacking the pouches against tables and railings or using a strong magnet causes them to spring open, 油reports.
The case for ditching screens
The overall consensus is that screens are a distraction from engaged learning experiences. However, a new warning against screens has emerged: screens are making people less smart.
In 2024, the U.S. spent more than $30 billion equipping schools with laptops and tablets. Now, psychologists are reporting the effects of a widespread increase in screen time, according to .
Written testimony given earlier this year before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation by neuroscientist Jared Cooney Horvath argued that Gen Z is less cognitively capable than previous generations, despite having more access to advanced technology.
Horvath pointed to data revealed in the , which not only noted a stark decrease in test scores among 15-year-olds, but also a correlation between students’ assessment scores and time spent on computers.
“This is not a debate about rejecting technology,” Horvath wrote. “It is a question of aligning educational tools with how human learning actually works. Evidence indicates that indiscriminate digital expansion has weakened learning environments rather than strengthened them.”
Some school leaders have already reversed their technology policies. In December, Kansas’ McPherson Middle School announced that students will turn in Chromebooks and return to “paper and pencil tasks,” according to .
Instead, technology will be used during instruction when appropriate, and students can check out laptops if needed for homework.
As for parents, they remain fearful of screens hampering their kids’ education, according to , which reported on families refusing to let their kids use school-issued devices.
One parent and former teacher, Emily Cherkin, who recently testified before Congress about screen time in education, developed that serves as “a guide for parents navigating screen time, digital tools, and technology use in education,” according to her website.
The toolkit includes research on the efficacy of edtech tools and questions parents should ask school administrators about the tools they’re requiring students to use.
“For me, opting out is not the end goalit’s the means to the end,” Cherkin told NBC News. “And the way I see it is, you force a conversation. It gives permission to other parents to even just start asking questions.”
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