Cell phone use and reading survey

 A recent survey of 900 school librarians and educators across the country revealed that mobile device policy that banned cell phone coincided with 2/3 reporting more visual engagement with books in classrooms, increased library circulation, and more independent reading during free periods. Full bans, especially those who used physical storage methods, outperformed looser "off and away" approaches, particularly in high schools. 

Yurio, K. (2026. July 23). SLJ survey: Cell phone bans boost reading, library use. School Library Journal. https://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/story/SLJ-Survey-Cell-Phone-Bans-Boost-Reading-Library-Use 

High school AI use study

AI use in U.S. high schools has become “fully embedded in how students respond to homework and other assignments” and raises issues on the value of homework assignments. “The percentage of high school students who report using generative AI for schoolwork is growing, increasing from an already high 79% to 84% between January and May of this year, according to surveys conducted by College Board, the nonprofit that manages much of the nation's standardized tests, including the SAT. That means increasing numbers of students are assigning their own homework to AI – even if it puts learning at peril. AI can solve a math problem and also show the work step by step. It can summarize and analyze a reading passage. It can write an entire essay, in ways increasingly difficult to spot. …” Teachers are finding alternate ways to develop in-class and out-of-class assignments. (Los Angeles Times via PressReader, Oct. 25, 2025).

 U.S. high school students’ use of generative artificial intelligence: New evidence from high school students, parents and educators. By Alexandra Adair, et al. College Board Research. Oct. 2025

 "In the United States, social-emotional well-being has become a priority because of concerning mental health and well-being outcomes for adolescent youth. High schools and school districts have responded by expanding mental health and social-emotional supports. However, there is little research to understand the ways in which educational leaders—including superintendents, school district coordinators, and principals—organize practices and policies to support social-emotional well-being for high school students.

In this report, the authors seek to close this research gap by presenting findings from a multi-method, multiyear national study on social-emotional well-being supports, focusing on high school students. The authors’ takeaways include insights about high school staffing, high school–specific practices that support social-emotional well-being, equity-oriented social-emotional well-being supports for minoritized students, district-level supports, and challenges to implementing or maintaining social-emotional well-being initiatives at the high school level. The authors also provide recommendations aimed at school district leaders, high school leaders, and educational policymakers."

Kennedy, K., & Wells, J. (2024). Social-emotional well-being for high school students: Guidance for school and system policy and practice. RAND. 

https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA3377-1.html??cutoff=true&utm_source=AdaptiveMailer&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=701QK00000I6K6ZYAV&utm_term=00vQK00000CvYNqYAN&org=1674&lvl=100&ite=292299&lea=3909544&ctr=0&par=1&trk=a0wQK000007t2A1YAI

Secondary School Reading Study in England

 A recent study of reading achievement of students in England's secondary schools revealed several factors that predicted reading gains: leadership of reading such as a deputy head of literacy lead, regular assessment to accurately determine students' reading needs, training staff on emerging reading strategies, highly skilled librarians to select and promote appropriate books, adequate funding to support reader needs, and staff awareness of students' reading levels and needs. 

'Now the whole school is reading': Supporting struggling readers in secondary schools. (2022, Oct.). Ofstead.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/now-the-whole-school-is-reading-supporting-struggling-readers-in-secondary-school/now-the-whole-school-is-reading-supporting-struggling-readers-in-secondary-school#monitoring-the-impact-of-additional-teaching-and-knowing-what-works

HS to College Readiness and Librarians Study

A statewide, multi-institutional research project explored the role of certified school librarians in providing resources and instruction to students and identifying equity issues among first-year college students’ preparation for college research. High school librarians impact students' college preparedness and ability to cite sources. 

Valenza, J., Berg, C., Bushby, R., Charles, L., Dalal, H., Dalyrmple, J., & Demspey, M. (2022). What’s in a Frame? Perspectives of high school librarians and first-year college students. College & Research Libraries News, 83(9), 393. doi:https://doi.org/10.5860/crln.83.9.393

Valenza, J., Dalal, H., Mohamad, G., Boyer, B., Berg, C., Charles, L., Bushby, R., Dempsey, M., Dalrymple, EJ., &Dziedzic-Elliott, E. (2022). First years’ information literacy Backpacks: What’s already packed or not packed? Journal of Academic Librarianship 48(2). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acalib.2022.102566.

Online vs F2F learning and stress study

 High-school students who have at least some amount of in-classroom learning are less likely to report stress and worry than their peers who are learning fully online, according to a recent study. The survey of 10,000 students at 12 high schools also found that remote students were more likely to worry about their grades and less likely to have an adult to speak with about a personal issue.

Challenge Success and NBC News. (2021). Kids under pressure. Challenge Success.

https://www.challengesuccess.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/CS-NBC-Study-Kids-Under-Pressure-PUBLISHED.pdf

Pandemic impact on students

 Some high-school students feel more motivated to learn in school than online and do not have equal access to remote instruction, according to a national survey administered in the early days of the coronavirus pandemic, from March 26 to April 1. Results also show the toll of the pandemic on students' mental health, with one sharing it felt like life was in chaos. "Most, but not all, students had access to the technology needed for online learning; however, many found it difficult to adapt." The study recommends addressing inequities of access to technology and Internet, addressing food insecuriy, considering the whole student, improving online instruction and materials.

Croft, M. et al. (2020). HIgh school students' experiences in March during the coronavirus pandemic. Iowa City, IA: ACT Center for Equity in Learning.  https://www.act.org/content/dam/act/unsecured/documents/R1841-covid-insights.pdf 

High school students' emotions study

When researchers  asked more than 21,678 U.S. high school students to say how they typically felt at school, nearly 75 percent of their answers were negative. "Tired" topped the list, followed by "bored" and "stressed," with positive words like "happy" distantly following.Students reported feeling boredom and stressed, but in the moment they reported feeling calm, happy, and relaxed even more often. What didn't change was the one "feeling" the researchers hadn't expected at all: Students overwhelmingly reported feeling tired. It was the only feeling consistently named by more than half of the students. The study also found that boys and girls tended to experience school differently. Girls reported more negative feelings than boys overall, and in the moment, girls were much more likely to say they were stressed. As of 2016 the National Sleep Foundation found that 87 percent of high school students in the United States sleep significantly less than the recommended 8 to 10 hours per night. And on the heels of the Yale study, another in the journal Molecular Psychiatry also found that even preteen students who got insufficient sleep had higher rates of anxiety, depression, impulsive behavior, and poor cognitive performance. 
Moeller, J. et al.  (2020).  High school students' feelings. Learning & Instruction, 66 (April).
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.learninstruc.2019.101301

Student Media Literacy Research

A nationwide sampling of high school students were assessed for their ability to evaluate digital sources on the open internet. Nearly all students floundered. Ninety percent received no credit on four of six tasks. Some of the specific findings follow: 

• Fifty-two percent of students believed a grainy video claiming to show ballot stuffing in the 2016 Democratic primaries (the video was actually shot in Russia) constituted “strong evidence” of voter fraud in the U.S. Among more than 3,000 responses, only three students tracked down the source of the video, even though a quick search turns up a variety of articles exposing the ruse. 
• Two-thirds of students couldn’t tell the difference between news stories and ads (set off by the words “Sponsored Content”) on Slate’s homepage.
• Ninety-six percent of students did not consider why ties between a climate change website and the fossil fuel industry might lessen that website’s credibility. Instead of investigating who was behind the site, students focused on superficial markers of credibility: the site’s aesthetics, its top-level domain, or how it portrayed itself on the About page.

Breakstone, J., Smith, M., Wineburg, S., Rapaport, A., Carle, J., Garland, M., & Saavedra, A. (2019). Students’ civic online reasoning: A national portrait. Palo Alto, CA: Stanford History Education Group & Gibson Consulting. https://purl.stanford.edu/gf151tb4868

Computer Science Access Inequity Study

About 61% of high schools in California do not offer computer science education, according to a study. Research shows that about 3% of high schoolers were enrolled in such courses but students from rural, low-income areas and students of color have less access.
Kapor Center. (2019). Computer science in California's schools. Oakland, CA: Kapor Center.
https://www.kaporcenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Computer-Science-in-California-Schools.pdf

Educational opportunities and image study

High school students are willing to ignore educational opportunities when they're concerned about how they'll be viewed by their classmates. Researchers found that educational messages need to be modified, depending on the social culture of the school.
Bursztyn, L., Egorov, G., & Jensen, R. (2017). Cool to be smart or smart to be cool? Understanding peer pressure in education. Cambridge, MA: National Bureau of Economics.
http://www.nber.org/papers/w23020

School-College dual enrollment study

A new study finds that colleges and universities are using dual-enrollment programs as recruiting tools, as well as to serve students who seek a challenge. The study also discusses barriers to such dual programs.
Kilgore, W., & Taylor, A. (20160. Dual enrollment in the context of strategic enrollment management. Washington, DC: AACRAO.
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/high_school_and_beyond/161004_AACRAO_Report.pdf

College readiness research

The number of students passing high-school exit exams is at an all-time high, but about 60% of students enrolling in community colleges have to take remedial courses, according to recent research. "There is a disconnect that has existed for a long time in terms of the measures used for high-school graduation and if a student is ready to succeed in a college-level class," said Mary Fulton of the Education Commission of the States.
Community College Research Center. (2016). Community college FAQs. New York: Columbia University.
http://ccrc.tc.columbia.edu/Community-College-FAQs.html

STEM gender gap report

The gender gap in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics may be starting to turn, according to new 2009 data from the National Center for Education Statistics. The data is coming at a time when states and districts are in a big push to get more students—and particularly girls—into STEM careers. By 12th grade, girls in 2009 were more likely than boys to have earned credit in advanced math and science, including Algebra II, chemistry, biology, and health sciences, though boys are significantly more likely to earn credit in computer science and engineering. However, girls continued to underperform in small but persistent ways across several STEM-related parts of the National Assessment of Educational Progress.
U.S. Department of Education. (2015). Gender differences in science, technology,  engineering and mathematics (STEM) interest, credits earned, and  NAEP performance in the 12th grade. 
http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2015/2015075.pdf

Deeper learning research

Deeper Learning Approach Shows Positive Student Gains
      The idea that students need to develop a deeper understanding of content and the ability to apply what they learn in one area to another area are major premises of new learning standards, such as the Common Core State Standards and Next Generation Science Standards. A new study now shows that schools promoting the practices of what's called "deeper learning" are getting better results from their students. According to the American Institute for Research, deeper learning consists of three elements: a "deeper understanding of core academic content"; "the ability to apply that understanding to novel problems and situations"; and "development of a range of competencies," such as communication, collaboration, "learning to learn," development of an academic mindset and self-control.
     The organization examined outcomes for students attending schools that participate in a deeper learning network community of practice. Researchers compared 13 "network" schools against non-network schools with similar levels of incoming student achievement rates and comparable levels of federal, state and local funding. All are public high schools with student populations that include students of color, English language learners and students from low-income families.
     The study found that the network schools tackled development of deeper learning competencies in different ways. Most used project-based learning to help students master core academic content areas and critical thinking skills, but the structure of those projects varied across schools. Students at these schools reported "greater opportunities" to engage in deeper learning than the students in non-network schools. The network schools, for example, put a bigger emphasis on internship opportunities, study groups and student participation in decision-making.
 American Institute for Research.  (2014). Study of deeper learning: Opportunities and outcomes.
http://www.air.org/project/study-deeper-learning-opportunities-and-outcomes

Graduation rate report

U.S. Graduation Rate Reaches 80% for the First Time
According to a recent report, the high school graduation rate for the class of 2011 was 79 percent, while the graduation rate for the class of 2012 was 80 percent. The public high school event dropout rate for the United States remained constant at 3.3 percent for both school year 2010–11 and school year 2011–12. Students with limited English proficiency had a significantly lower average adjusted cohort graduation rate at 59%.
National Center for Education Statistics. (2014). Public high school four-year on-time graduation rates and event dropout rates. Washington, DC: Author.
http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2014391

High school students research skills research

To better understand how high school students apply their information literacy skills when conducting research and how these students carry out research projects, researchers asked a group of 289 high school seniors to complete an information literacy survey related to the research process. In addition, approximately ten percent of these students were randomly selected and asked to participate in an interview to provide more in-depth information about their perspectives on finding and using information. Results indicate the study participants were able to use library resources to locate and use information, that they used a variety of resources, and that they considered themselves successful library users. However, participants voiced a need for help in deciding which resources are best to use and how to identify important information from those resources. These high school seniors also wanted to learn more about how to use books for research. Although these students indicated they may need assistance when doing research, they rarely asked the school librarians for help. These findings are discussed in the context of the role of school librarians.

Kovalik, Cindy; Yutzey, Susan; and Piazza, Laura. “Information Literacy and High School Seniors: Perceptions of the Research Process.” School Library Research, 16.
http://www.ala.org/aasl/sites/ala.org.aasl/files/content/aaslpubsandjournals/slr/vol16/SLR_Information_Literacy_High_School_Seniors_V16.pdf

Student research study

The teachers who instruct the most advanced American secondary school students render mixed verdicts about students’ research habits and the impact of technology on their studies.
Some 77% of advanced placement (AP) and National Writing Project (NWP) teachers surveyed say that the internet and digital search tools have had a “mostly positive” impact on their students’ research work. But 87% say these technologies are creating an “easily distracted generation with short attention spans” and 64% say today’s digital technologies “do more to distract students than to help them academically.” Some key findings include:

• Virtually all (99%) AP and NWP teachers in this study agree with the notion that “the internet enables students to access a wider range of resources than would otherwise be available,” and 65% agree that “the internet makes today’s students more self-sufficient researchers.”
• At the same time, 76% of teachers surveyed “strongly agree” with the assertion that internet search engines have conditioned students to expect to be able to find information quickly and easily.
• Large majorities also agree with the notion that the amount of information available online today is overwhelming to most students (83%) and that today’s digital technologies discourage students from using a wide range of sources when conducting research (71%).
• Fewer teachers, but still a majority of this sample (60%), agree with the assertion that today’s technologies make it harder for students to find credible sources of information.
• Given these concerns, it is not surprising that 47% of these teachers strongly agree and another 44% somewhat believe that courses and content focusing on digital literacy should be incorporated into every school’s curriculum.

Purcell, K., et al. (2012). How teens do research in the digital age. Washington, DC: Pew Research Center.
http://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2012/Student-Research.aspx

Students' views and use of technology

Technology skills are essential to a successful future, according to students surveyed in the second annual 21st-Century Classroom Report, a nationwide survey of more than 1,000 high school students, faculty and IT staff. The report seeks to understand how students and faculty want to use technology, measure how classroom technology is evolving and identify opportunities for continued growth.
Key findings:
High school faculty’s vision of a 21st-century classroom is evolving to include wireless Internet, interactive whiteboards and digital content - a year ago, faculty limited must-have technology to an Internet connection, teacher computing device and LCD projector
Most students still use technology more outside of school than in class. While nearly all students - 94% - say they use technology to study or work on class assignments at home, only 46% of faculty say they regularly assign homework that requires use of technology
73% of IT professionals report that their districts are currently using or considering using digital content
Just 39% of students say their high school is meeting their technology expectations

CDW Government LLC (2011). 2011 CDW-G 21st-Century Classroom Report. Vernon Hills, IL: Author.
http://newsroom.cdw.com/features/feature-06-27-11.html