Unlikely Bedfellows, DeSantis and Teachers Union Agree on Smartphones

What do the nation’s largest teacher union and the country’s most conservative governor agree on? Smartphones—specifically, keeping them out of the classroom.

In 2023, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis made his state the first to prohibit students from using cellphones during instructional time. Policymakers in other states quickly followed, including South Carolina, Indiana, and California. Now, lawmakers in Tennessee and New Hampshire are among those considering similar proposals.

The plans have remarkable bipartisan support. Florida’s K-12 system is known for school choice, deregulation, and strong civics standards, while California schools are dominated by unions and lessons on “diversity, equity, and inclusion” are common. Yet officials in both states correctly view phones as a distraction to learning. So, too, does the National Education Association, a reliably left-of-center interest group. A union survey found that 90% of its members support policies that keep phones away from students during lessons.

On both sides of the aisle, policymakers recognize that phones are a problem in school: Surveys find that teenagers spend more than seven hours per day on their phone, on average, with more than half of this time spent on social media. Forty-six percent of teens responded to a Pew Research survey saying they are online “almost constantly.” Still other research suggests that steady social media use results in hypersensitivity to others’ opinions, leading to more time on social media.

So, while access to the internet can aid students in research and help families communicate, smartphones are an unwelcome distraction during the school day.

Some critics argue that if students cannot get to their phone, they will not be able to alert authorities in the event of an emergency. But phones actually may do more to contribute to school violence than prevent such problems. National School Safety and Security Services, a school safety consulting firm, observes that students can use phones to send threats to school administration or other students during the day. Phones can also keep students from following instructions when adults respond to emergencies because students’ eyes are glued to a screen instead of following the directions of a teacher. And rumors spread quickly in the event of a crisis, even faster with cellphones.

If a parent urgently needs to get in touch with their child, they may call the school, and if a student needs to call their parent because they forgot something at home, for example, they may use a phone provided by the front office.

Other critics may say these policies should be made by school districts. Yet educators in nearly 80% of all schools have adopted policies limiting cellphone access during school days and problems persist. State officials should collaborate with local officials to determine which policies are effective.

In addition, absent school choice, many families are not afforded the luxury—financially or geographically—to choose a school that has a phone-free policy over one that does not.

Policymakers would do well to carefully design phone policies for schools.

Tennessee’s latest proposal, for example, requires local boards of education to design policies for their schools that at least prohibit students from using cell phones in class unless the use is part of an educational activity or necessary for emergency response or a student’s health.

Policymakers should consider “bell-to-bell policies” that require students to turn in their phones at the start of the day, or at least at the start of each class period. Policies formed through compromise that only restrict students from using their phone during class keep teachers on the hook for policing.

When students can carry their phone with them during a school day, they may be less prone to make eye contact and hold conversations. Critically, it results in kids pouring over their phone in between class periods and during lunch, encouraging their impulse to turn to their phone rather than developing basic social skills by talking with peers in the hallway and at lunch.

Furthermore, kids may access obscene content on their smartphones through their data plans that school devices and wi-fi is required to filter and block.

Heavy and habitual phone use has harmful ramifications. A recent scientific study shows it can lead to an “inability to exert prolonged mental effort.” Heavy screen use among teens has also been linked to loneliness.

The U.S. surgeon’s general report in May 2023 painted a troubling connection between frequent social media or phone use and changes in the developing brain’s emotional learning and behavior and impulse control.

Research supports limits on student cellphone use, and policymakers and interest groups on the left and right also agree on firm boundaries. Adults should not be discouraged if students are not part of this consensus—their job is not to comply with students but to protect them.

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