Cell Phones In and Out of Classrooms
A friend of mine asked me about cell phones in classrooms yesterday. Since I’m passionate about the neuroscience of things like attention and productivity… and I’ve spent a lot of my adult life as an educator and parent… this is right up my alley. The hard part is keeping it short and to the point!
Why is cell phone management so hard?
Look, cell phones are great. I love my little pocket computer and I use it constantly. It is key to my own productivity. BUT it is also my biggest time wasting device. It takes a lot of advanced cognitive skills to be able to regulate my time and attention when interacting with this device, and these are not easily learned skills. In fact I do workshops to help parents, teens, college students, and professionals learn how to regulate time on digital devices and I am constantly learning and struggling myself.
Why is it so hard to regulate? Major companies hire neuroscientists into their marketing departments to make sure that your attention never wanders from their pages. Every social media company is hiring neuroscientists to design their features to hook attention and deliver the right amount of reward stimulation to keep you coming back. Currently there is no regulation on these big technology companies. The average person is completely out of luck to fight the war for their own mind against the best and brightest who are armed with every resource money can buy.
Why is this especially hard for teens?
We’ve always known that peer pressure is a particular challenge for teens. Developmentally, these brains are overly dependent and susceptible to emotion, fear, and anxiety, especially due to social influences outside the family group. Meanwhile their prefrontal cortex, in charge of executive functions and regulating emotion, won’t fully develop until age 25 on average. These brains are ripe for social-emotional distractions and pressures.
What’s the latest research about cell phones in the classroom?
In the summer of 2023, following a 14-country study, UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) called for smartphones to be banned in schools around the world. Excessive mobile phone use was linked to reduced educational performance and had a negative effect on children’s emotional stability.
One of the key issues is concentration. We tend to think of smart phone interruptions as quick and benign, however this study elucidated that it takes up to 20 minutes for a student to shift attention from sending a quick text response to getting back to the lesson at hand.
Read more about worldwide responses to this ban:
In this article in The Guardian: ‘Put learners first’: Unesco calls for global ban on smartphones in schools.
On the UN website: UNESCO education report advises appropriate use of technology in schools
On the World Economic Forum site: UNESCO calls for a ban on phones in schools. Here's why
This Washington Post article: “Schools should ban smartphones. Parents should help.” is behind a paywall, but if you have access it’s a wonderful perspective.
and many other worldwide websites and news sources
There are many debates about the challenges of going cell-free in the classroom. This is a compelling article from Boston University on Why Schools Should Ban Cell Phones in the Classroom—and Why Parents Have to Help, in which they interview a faculty member studying cell phone use in classroom about her own research as well as her perspectives on the UNESCO study.
Here’s a recent article form the AP News on some of the politics of cell phone bans in America. Kids are using phones in class, even when it’s against the rules. Should schools ban them all day?
What’s the bottom line?
Smart phones are not advised in the classroom or school setting for k-12 and may have even worse outcomes for university students than high school. Countries, schools, and classrooms that have banned them are seeing positive effects.
What about cell phones at home?
I do workshops and coaching sessions on productivity and attention, which include managing cell phone use. I have a lot to say about this… and plenty of wins and losses to share as a parent!
I’ve blogged before about cell phones and sleep habits… take my Ultimate Sleep Challenge and get devices out of the bedroom.
There’s so much more to say on this topic! Stay tuned and please feel free to reach out with more questions!
