Social psychologist and author Jonathan Haidt recently predicted that American schools will ban the use of smartphones in classrooms by next fall.
Haidt, whose recent book “The Anxious Generation” has awakened Americans to the harmful effects of smartphones and social media on their children, Talk to the Free Press (TFP) recently, saying that parents and teachers are now taking the issue seriously and are pushing for a ban on the devices in schools.
“I think we will make the vast majority of schools in the United States phone-free,” Haidt told the site, pointing to next September as the likely point at which schools will ban smartphones.
Psychologist Jonathan Haidt spoke to The Free Press recently about how American schools are looking to ban smartphones from classrooms. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images))
The outlet's report on Haidt's impact opened by describing how schools have been looking to limit students' access to smartphones in recent years, with teachers concerned that the devices have captured children's attention in the classroom, a dynamic they say has come from social isolation and virtual learning being pushed. During the Covid-19 pandemic.
“They looked at me like I was just saying woah, woah, woah,” Seaside School District teacher Susanna Krueger told the Free Press, describing her students on their phones in the classroom after a year of remote learning.
“Most of the kids in her class were either sleeping with their heads on their desks, wearing headphones, or just blindly swiping,” she added. Through TikTok. When she asked them to hand over their devices, she said most students “refused.”
While Krueger and other educators have noticed the problem, Seaside and other school districts recently decided to ban these devices in schools.
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Haidt predicted that most American schools will ban the use of smartphones at the beginning of the next academic year. (Matt Cardy/Getty Images)
“Seaside joined thousands of schools across the country in recently banning smartphones, as a growing body of evidence shows they are linked to smartphones. Low test scores The report stated that a similar ban would take effect after the winter school break in Virginia, South Carolina and California and high rates of mental illness among teenagers.
The outlet cited Haidt as one of the main reasons why awareness of the harms of smartphones spread so quickly. “So why is this movement seeing results now? I talked to dozens of people — educators, activists, parents — and they all gave the same answer: Jonathan Haidt,” wrote the report's author, Olivia Ringgold.
The author's book has been praised by prominent figures on the right and left, including Governor Ron DeSantis – who… Banned smartphones From K-12 public schools in 2023 – former President Barack Obama and Microsoft founder Bill Gates.
Psychologist Jan Twenge told the Free Press: “There has been a lot of progress in the past year after years of relatively slow progress. A lot of that has to do with John’s book – it has brought the conversation further to the forefront. He has inspired a lot of managers and supervisors to put Stricter rules.”
The outlet described the book's approach to achieving Haidt's “Great Renewal of Childhood,” which requires implementing four “fundamental rules.” “It's: no smartphones before high school, no social media before age 16, no phones at school, and more unsupervised play and independence for kids.”
Haidt told TFP he was “amazed” at how quickly awareness of the issue spread, saying: “The only other example of social change I've seen that moved so quickly was the fall of the Iron Curtain.”
The psychiatrist believes that many parents oppose the idea of giving their children smartphones, but they fall under social pressure over the years. “All the parents were thinking: I don't want to give my child a smartphone at the age of 10, but she comes home and says: 'Mom, I'm the only one.'” This is the magic phrase: “I'm the only one who doesn't have one.”
However, he now noted that parents and teachers are finally starting to fight back after “it's clear that all schools” are in favor of banning it.
