An Alabama teacher has lauded the benefits of a new state law banning cell phones in school classrooms.
“It’s magic,” Tuscaloosa County High School 11th-grade history teacher Jonathan Buchwalter said in a TikTok earlier this month that reached nearly two million views.
Across the U.S., thirty-three states have enacted legislation regarding school cellphone usage, amid a growing effort to restrict students’ smartphone access in schools, over concerns about mental health and academic attentiveness, according to Ballotpedia.
“Today, all of my students, 100% of them, took notes in my class, did their assignment, asked for help when they got stuck, and turned it in, and then when they were done, they talked to each other,” he said.
Buchwalter explained it was still early days, and a complete assessment of the legislation’s impact could only be determined at the end of the school year.
“I have been pulling my hair out for like, eight years. Has it been this easy a solution the whole time?” Buchwalter asked his followers in the video.
Just days before Buchwalter revealed the benefits in his classroom, two studies identified links between problematic smartphone use (PSU) and depression, anxiety, and insomnia in teenagers.
Almost half of teens have admitted to being online constantly, according to 2024 data from the Pew Research Center. While 72% said they sometimes or frequently check their notifications from the minute they wake up.
“They’re chemically addicted to their phones,” Buchwalter said, adding, “They cannot experience anything that isn’t constant stimulation.”
As of July this year, 26 states – Arizona, Alabama, Arkansas, California, Ohio, Oregon, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Texas, Utah, Vermont, and West Virginia – enforced a full ban or cellphone limit in classrooms.
Other state departments, including the Connecticut Department of Education, the Kansas Department of Education, and the Washington Department of Education, have opted to create policies that limit classroom usage.
Meanwhile, Idaho Gov. Brad Little issued an executive order encouraging districts to limit cellphones in schools.
In Alaska, Colorado, and Minnesota, legislation requires K-12 public school districts to adopt policies around student cellphone use; however, the laws do not specify how the policies should be implemented.
Back in February, the National Center for Education Statistics outlined the benefits of the bans.
“The latest School Pulse Panel data underscore that school leaders see cell phones as more than just a classroom distraction,” said NCES Commissioner Peggy Carr.
“With 53 percent of school leaders reporting negative impacts of cell phone use on academic performance, and even more citing negative impacts on students’ mental health and attention spans, schools are facing a critical issue. Schools are responding with practical solutions, like banning or restricting phone use.”
