GIG WA’s Harbor Keyna Houston noted that the Peninsula School District’s two-year-old ban on cell phones in the classroom, one of the first in Washington, could not have arrived at a better time.
Thank God, the English teacher at Gig Harbor High School told Gig Harbor Now and the Kitsap Sun last year, I thought. I don’t have to fight this battle alone, at last.
It should come as no surprise that instructors responded to these initiatives in the most favorable ways. According to new research from the University of Washington, they reported reduced stress, improved classroom management, and social benefits for their students.
The report, which has not yet undergone peer review, provides the first comprehensive examination of the opinions of educators, parents, and kids in Washington regarding these initiatives.
Following their return from the pandemic closures, districts reported previously unheard-of levels of disruptive behaviors and deteriorating mental health among kids, prompting them to take action to limit phone use. Over the past year, all Kitsap County schools have implemented some limits, following Peninsula’s example.
According to the Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction, 31% of districts mandate that students put down their devices for the whole of the school day, and 53% of schools in the state will have a policy limiting cellphone use by the beginning of the school year.
In six districts, including Peninsula, UW researchers polled almost 5,000 children, 220 teachers, and 480 parents, according to lead author and assistant psychology professor Luca Magis-Weinberg. She investigates how the digital age has changed adolescence.
The majority of students claimed they did not see any influence from the prohibitions, which made them less excited about them. According to Magis-Weinberg, 20% of students claimed that the policies had a beneficial effect on their ability to pay attention, while 70% claimed that they had no effect at all. Additionally, the majority claimed that it had little effect on their wellbeing.
According to survey results, students did not appear to believe that cellphone prohibitions made matters worse.
Magis-Weinberg remarked, “I was really surprised by the results.” They should have opposed the measures and had a very bad opinion of them, in my opinion.
How well do these prohibitions accomplish their stated objectives, and what kinds of limitations work best? Those are still unanswered questions.
There is no denying that phones may be a major source of distraction, thus when properly enforced, these prohibitions can promote healthier behaviors, according to Magis-Weinberg. Each district must simultaneously customize them to meet its own requirements, ideally developing rules with staff and student involvement.
Administrators should provide regulations that are uniform across classrooms and teachers, as both students and teachers prefer that these limits be applied consistently. According to Magis-Weinberg, no one likes it when schools let teachers make phone choices. Teachers are often pitted against one another.
Researchers discovered that removing phones alone was insufficient to encourage social engagement. Alternative forms of student connection, such as games or activities, nevertheless need to be introduced in schools.
Additionally, bans did not seem to significantly improve outcomes related to mental health or academic performance. However, Magis-Weinberg claimed that they appear to have made little but noticeable advancements, especially for educators.
According to her, these regulations made it possible for teachers to go from referee to coach. As an alternative to punishing pupils, they can now promote healthy digital behaviors.
“I think that’s important,” she added, “anything that makes teachers feel less stressed, more effective, and shifts the relationship from policing to actually having time to teach and connect with students.”
Teachers in middle schools also noted that children appeared more at ease and had resumed their more silly and lively behavior. Teachers reported that students were too preoccupied with their appearance. They behaved differently because they were afraid that someone would film or photograph them.
“I think it’s a clear takeaway that (schools) should really be very very strict about recording,” she said, even if a school is not enforcing a prohibition.
The Kitsap Sun first published this item as part of Washington State University’s Murrow News Fellow program.
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