Banned Cellphone Impact Study

 A recent report indicates that nearly 80% of teens attend schools with "no cellphone" policies, but that students continue to use their devices for nonacademic purposes. Bans differ in scope, with about half of students reporting total restrictions throughout the school day and another 40% experiencing limits only during instructional time.

Rapaport, A. (2026). Cell Phone School Policies: Implementation, Perceived Impacts, and Student and Parent Beliefs. Center for Applied Research in Education at the University of Southern California   https://dornsife.usc.edu/cesr/wp-content/uploads/sites/54/2026/01/UAS-CARE-Cell-phone-policy-results.pdf

Cell phone use in school studies

 

A recent study reveals that teens spend an average of 1.5 hours on their phones during school, with 25% exceeding two hours. This represents a significant increase from previous studies, which reported only 43 minutes of phone use during school.

Christakis D., et al. (2025). Adolescent smartphone use during school hours. JAMA Pediatrics.  doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2024.6627

Schools implementing cellphone bans have seen significant improvements in student behavior and engagement. The North Adams school district in Massachusetts reported a 75% drop in disciplinary referrals, while the Bentonville district in Arkansas saw a 57% reduction in aggression and a 51% decrease in drug-related offenses.
Banerji, O. (2025). What schools look like without cellphone distraction. Education Week. 
https://www.edweek.org/technology/what-schools-look-like-without-the-cellphone-distraction/2025/02
 

This report  looks at statewide laws and policies on cellphones in schools. 
Prothero, A., Langreo, L., & Klein, A. (2024). Whit states ban or restrict cellphones in school? Education Week. https://www.edweek.org/technology/which-states-ban-or-restrict-cellphones-in-schools/2024/06

Mobile device affect on students

A national survey of educators and interviews with school principals reveal big concerns about how the proliferation of digital devices is affecting K-12 education. Two-thirds of students use smartphones in schools, 90% of high schoolers use them on campus. While such devices facilitate communication and remediation through relevant apps, it also facilitates distractions, misbehavior, and cheating, Nevertheless, usage will probably increase. 

Smartphones and other devices in schools. (2020). Education Week. https://www.edweek.org/media/tc2020%20survey%20report%206.5.20.pdf

Screen Time Use and Academics Study

Not all screen time is created equal, according to a review of 58 studies from 23 countries published recently. The review found that time students spent watching television and playing video games -- rather than time spent on the internet and using mobile phones -- negatively affected academics. Watching more TV impacted language and math abilities as well as an overall academic composite for teens; just language and math abilities were impacted in younger children. Teen scores appeared to be worse than those of younger children when the amount of time spent watching TV went up. On average, a typical child plays video games for 40 minutes a day and watches between 1.8 and 2.8 hours of TV each day. Almost a third of children and adolescents spend more than four hours a day on screens, with boys outpacing girls.
Adelantado-Renau M, Moliner-Urdiales D, Cavero-Redondo I, Beltran-Valls MR, Martínez-Vizcaíno V, Álvarez-Bueno C. (2019, Sept. 23). Association Between Screen Media Use and Academic Performance Among Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis . JAMA Pediatrics. doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2019.3176
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/fullarticle/2751330?guestAccessKey=f02523bb-1adb-4566-8f9f-02bab8189b69&utm_source=For_The_Media&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=ftm_links&utm_content=tfl&utm_term=092319

Anxiety and Depression Associated with Technology Use

Symptoms of internet withdrawal -- increased anxiety, blood pressure and heart rate -- are close to what drug addicts experience, according to a study by researchers at Swansea University and Milan University. Participants in the study reported spending an average of five hours a day online with most of that time spent on social media sites. The findings suggest that long term utilization of ICTs as an emotional coping strategy may have a negative influence on mental health and/or exacerbate mental health predispositions.

Other key takeaways from this study include:

-       High engagement with cell phones and internet is linked with anxiety and depression.

-       Using devices to alleviate boredom is not associated with anxiety and depression.

-       Using devices for emotional coping is associated with anxiety and depression.

-       Mobile phones may provide a “security blanket effect” in anxiety-inducing situations.

-       Path of short-term stress was almost the same irrespective of coping mechanism used.

Panova, T., & Lleras, A. (2016). Avoidance or boredom: Negative mental health outcomes associated with use of information and communication technologies depend on users’ motivations. Computers in Human Behavior, 58, 249-258. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2015.12.062

Children's media use report

A sampling survey found that 95% of households with children age 8 and younger had a cell phone, and other electronic devices were also common. These children tend to spend more than two hours daily with media. The digital divide has lessened. The amount of reading has remained steady, but many parents to not read to their children age 2 and younger. These an other findings point out the need for media literacy.
Common Sense. (2017). The Common Sense survey: Media use by kids age zero to eight. San Francisco, CA: Common Sense.
https://www.commonsensemedia.org/research/the-common-sense-census-media-use-by-kids-age-zero-to-eight-2017

Smartphone use survey

This survey analyzed teen smartphone usage by site (e.g., Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat are the most popular social media sites) and demographics. 92% of teens go online daily, and a quarter state that they go online, mainly by phone, “constantly.” African Americans were most likely to have a smartphone; of teens who did not have such a phone, only two-thirds went online daily.

Pew Research Center. (2015). Teens, Social Media & Technology Overview 2015: Smartphones Facilitate Shifts in Communication Landscape for Teens. Washington, DC: Pew Research Center. http://www.pewinternet.org/files/2015/04/PI_TeensandTech_Update2015_0409151.pdf

Student Media Addiction Worldwide

It doesn't matter if a college student lives in the United States, Chile, China, Slovakia, Mexico or Lebanon -- many are addicted to media, researchers say. Researchers found whether in developing countries or developed countries the findings are strikingly similar in how teens and young adults use media and how "addicted" they are to their cellphone, laptop or mp3 player. The researchers asked about 1,000 students in 10 countries on five continents to give up all media for 24 hours and record their experiences.

Salzburg Academy on Media & Global Change and International Center for Media & the Public Affairs (ICMPA), 2011, http://theworldunplugged.wordpress.com/

Mobile use report

Youth are big proponents of using cell phones for education, according to a recent report. Some statistics follow:
60% of students in 6-12 grades think using their own phones would improve tech at their school
31% of students in HS own a smart phone (78% of them think using those devised would improve tech at school)
67% of HS students can access an Internet-enabled phone
62% of parents would buy a mobile device for their child's educational use.
Blackboard and Project Tomorrow. 2010. Learning in the 21st century: Taking it mobile.
http://www.tomorrow.org/speakup/MobileLearningReport_2010.html