Phones Off & Away.

TODAY.com

School leaders at the Dayton public school district decided to ban cellphones from all middle and high school campuses and as the school year comes to a close, they’re already seeing improvements in reading, math and social interaction between students. NBC’s Vicky Nguyen reports for TODAY.

Schoolsecurity.org

We set forth on this page a look at the historical perspective of cell phones in schools, a detailed explanation of how they can detract from safety in a crisis, and recommendations for addressing the current day reality of cell phones and other technology being a part of today’s students’ lives and how schools must adapt realistically.

Yondr Creates Phone-Free Spaces

Yondr works with educators, artists, organizations and individuals around the world to create phone-free spaces where genuine connection, focus, and creativity can flourish in the absence of technology.

Washington Post

When Raymond Dolphin became assistant principal of a middle school in Connecticut two years ago, it was clear to him that the kids were not all right. The problem was cellphones. Students were using the devices in class, despite a rule against it. Social media was exacerbating nearly every conflict among students.

THE INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

From New York Times bestselling coauthor of The Coddling of the American Mind, an essential investigation into the collapse of youth mental health-and a plan for a healthier, freer childhood.

Adam Grant Instagram

New study of 400+ middle schools in Norway: after smartphone bans, girls had fewer mental health issues & better grades. Smartphones belong at home or in lockers.

NY Times

After reading many of the over 900 responses from parents and educators to my questionnaire about tech in schools and from the many conversations I had over the past few weeks with readers, I’m convinced that the downsides of tech in schools far outweigh the benefits.

New York State School Board Association

"Off and away during the school day." That's the slogan behind Albion Central School District's cellphone policy as of September 2023. The Orleans County district does not allow elementary or middle school students to bring cellphones to school, and high school students are not allowed to bring them into classrooms.

PublicNewsService.com

Students at High Tech High in San Diego were asked to surrender their cellphones each day at school last session, and were surveyed on the changes they noticed throughout the year.

Awayfortheday.org

An organization that has collected cell phone policies from schools around the country to help you create the right policy for your school.

JonathanHaidt.com

These publicly visible “collaborative review” documents make it easy for anyone to acquaint themselves with the research literature on the many topics listed below. They offer the abstract and a direct link to each study.

Honestly with Bari Weiss

In this podcast, Haidt explains how this massive change happened, its detrimental effects on kids, and what actions we can take—both in our own lives and legislatively—in order to reverse course and free the anxious generation.

The Wall Street Journal

Educators cite classroom distractions and states aim to limit use, as the U.S. warns of mental-health risks.

The Atlantic

The environment in which kids grow up today is hostile to human development.

By Jonathan Haidt

The Atlantic

Phones can be addictive and distracting, and take a toll on teen mental health. Some schools are pushing back.

HHS.gov U.S. Surgeon General Advisory

This Advisory describes the current evidence on the impacts of social media on the mental health of children and adolescents. It states that we cannot conclude social media is sufficiently safe for children and adolescents and outlines immediate steps we can take to mitigate the risk of harm to children and adolescents.

C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital

Common Sense has focused our research efforts on hearing directly from young people about both the role and the impact of media and technology in their lives. This report fills a gap in our understanding of how teens actually use their smartphones, combining data from kids' phones themselves with feedback from our Youth Advisory Council.

CBS Mornings

More schools across the country are requiring students to lock away phones during school hours. CBS News' Meg Oliver spent the day at a high school in Newburgh, New York, to see how going phone-free has transformed the school experience. She also sat down with a renowned social psychologist who has been researching the connection between phone use and declining mental health, calling it "worse than vaping."

The Atlantic

They impede learning, stunt relationships, and lessen belonging. They should be banned.

Afterbabel.com

The research is clear: Smartphones undermine attention, learning, relationships, and belonging.

The Guardian

Teachers say mobile phones make their lives a living hell – so one Massachusetts school barred them…

NY Post

Haidt, an NYU Stern professor of ethical leadership, writes that the past decade has seen “the radical transformation of childhood into something inhuman: a ­phone-​based existence.”

Learnsafe.com

A study shows that as of 2015, 73 percent of teenagers had smartphones. The push for cell phones in schools raises the question of the usefulness of student cell phones in school crisis situations.