Cell Phone Ban Needed in School
Published: Friday, March 6, 2026
The following is from Marissa Tanner, a seventh grade social studies teacher at Northview Middle School in Indianapolis. This commentary was released by Indiana Capital Chronicle.
When I began my teaching career in 2015, social media was still finding its footing. I believed I was helping my high school students build the skills needed to be "21st century learners" by allowing them limited cellphone use in my classroom. They learned self control as I helped them navigate when it was appropriate to look at a screen and when it was time to focus. Right?
Wrong.
As a middle school teacher in 2022, following COVID virtual learning, I looked out at a room of students who were utterly disengaged. They weren't talking to each other. They weren't participating in lessons. They were only interested in something if it involved a screen.
Our children were no longer just distracted by technology, they were addicted. I realized that no amount of teaching could compete with the dopamine rush of a smartphone. This is why I supported Indiana's Senate Bill 78—now awaiting the governor's signature—which implements a statewide "away for the day" ban on any cellular device during the school day. If signed, Indiana would join the growing momentum behind cellphone restrictions in school, which has reached more than half the states.
The data at my school confirms that when we remove the digital temptation, we reclaim the student. In 2023, we implemented a policy requiring phones to be stored in lockers for the entire day. Since then, the results have been undeniable. Our ILEARN state test proficiency scores in math jumped from 18% to 39%, while English results rose from 32% to 42%. While these gains can't just be attributed to the phone policy, the reduction of digital distractions certainly was a key part.
Beyond the grades, the culture of our school has shifted. Students are talking again. They are collaborating, building social skills and choosing to read physical books rather than pick up a device. The distractions I deal with now are the ones I know I caused as a student myself. Passing notes, talking during class, and creating notebooks to pass between friends. I will take those behaviors any day. They are the human distractions we can expect from teenagers.
I understand the hesitation to remove direct communication, but I am not just an educator, I am also a mother. I have a son in kindergarten and a daughter in daycare. Like many parents, I know the anxiety and discomfort that comes from not being able to instantly reach your child. I get the fear because I have been trained in crisis-situation management and can relate to the seriousness behind parents' anxiety because I feel it as well.
But family communication does not disappear when phones do. In my classroom, when a student needs to contact home for a forgotten item or a change in transportation, we use approved systems like classroom phones. Students stay in contact with their families but in a safe and structured way that allows learning to continue uninterrupted.
By supporting a bell-to-bell ban, we are doing more than just raising test scores. We are truly protecting our students from the very real issues that plague the lives of teenagers everywhere.
We are protecting their ability to focus and learn.
We are protecting them from online harassment and social pressure during the school day.
Ultimately, we are protecting their childhood.
My classroom today looks very different from only a few years ago. I see their faces and hear their laughter. My classroom feels safer because no one has to worry about being recorded or having a picture taken that could be used for bullying. I no longer have to be the enforcer, constantly looking for phones in laps instead of focusing on the goal: educate my students so they become their best selves.
Technology can return to its proper role in our schools as a tool, not a temptation. If we want students who are prepared for the future, we must be willing to make uncomfortable but necessary decisions today. Setting firm, consistent boundaries isn't just a policy change, it's an act of care. As adults, it's our job to make sure children can make choices like who to sit with at lunch and not have to worry about the notifications pinging on their devices.
Return to Top of Page