Cell phone ban in Ohio schools show impressive results, according to principals and students

The adoption of cell phone restrictions and outright bans in schools has been gaining traction in recent years. According to a Brookings Institute survey nearly all students in the United States attend schools that restrict the use of cellphones.

The measures are popular not only among adults but also with students. Over three-quarters of teen respondents and 93% of their caretakers expressed support for the measures.

Students expressing no impact or a positive one from the restrictions outnumber those who feel it has had a negative impact. The two areas where the greatest positive benefits have been noticed among both adults and students were on attention and academics.

These findings were reflected in another pair of surveys conducted by Corinne Brion, an associate professor at the University of Dayton, Ohio. However, students that she spoke to did express some concerns about even more restrictive measures public schools were to adopt at the beginning of year that would prohibit cell phone use during the entire day, with no exceptions at lunch or between classes.

Pros and cons of cell phone bans

Brion shared in Good Magazine that she heard from public school principals from varying types of districts last fall that partial bans had already proved beneficial in several ways.

Three out of five said that they saw fewer conflicts started online being brought into the classroom as well as students socializing verbally and face-to-face more outside of class. 70% noticed students actively conversing with their peers instead of being glued to their screens. And over two thirds reported students staying on a single task for more than 20 minutes without needing to get a digital fix.

However, when students were consulted in January of this year about the all-out ban from bell-to-bell, they expressed some reservations with it. While some told her they felt safe in the knowledge that their phone would be available in the main office in the event of an emergency, others felt anxious with the idea that people might not be able to reach them if there were an emergency.

The vast majority of students Brion spoke to argued that the bans deprived them of the ability to learn self-discipline, instead of treating them like young adults, they were being made to feel as if they are children incapable of making responsible decisions.

Furthermore, those applying to college and filling out scholarship applications explained that the ban prevented them from doing so as many of the online systems require smartphones to log-in and perform multifactor authentications.

Although the restrictions may be bearing fruit, Brion says that the insights she’s gained from her conversations with principals and students “offer a helpful starting point,” but that “they are just one part of a much larger conversation.”

She acknowledges that more research needs to be done, but notes that “rules are more likely to be respected when students feel they have a voice in the boundaries that affect their daily lives.”

Some recommendations she has for the time being so that school leaders may be able to address students’ safety and security concerns include “establishing a dedicated family emergency hotline that people can call,” offering supervised spaces where students could “briefly use their phones for multifactor authentication,” and “offer a specific time window for students to check messages on their phones.”

Get your game on! Whether you’re into NFL touchdowns, NBA buzzer-beaters, world-class soccer goals, or MLB home runs, our app has it all.

Dive into live coverage, expert insights, breaking news, exclusive videos, and more – plus, stay updated on the latest in current affairs and entertainment. Download now for all-access coverage, right at your fingertips – anytime, anywhere.