Overview
- A new NBER working paper from Stanford and partner universities found in-class phone use fell from 61% to 13% in schools using Yondr pouches, yet test scores, attendance, self-reported attention and perceived online bullying stayed about the same.
- The first year saw a 16% jump in suspensions and lower self-reported well-being, which generally returned to prior levels and then improved by years two to three.
- Teacher satisfaction with the phone-locking policy rose sharply in surveyed schools, increasing from 26% to 75%.
- States and districts continue to scale restrictions, with at least 37 states plus D.C. limiting phones and districts spending big, including New York City’s $29 million for pouches and Los Angeles’s $5.2 million.
- Reports differ on the study’s scope—about 4,600 schools in some coverage versus 43,000 in others—and the authors urge longer follow-up and note results depend on how bans are enforced and whether students switch to laptops.