Psychologist Jonathan Haidt predicts majority of US schools will be 'phone-free' by next fall
2024-12-31
Category: media

Social psychologist and author Jonathan Haidt recently predicted that U.S. schools will have banned smartphones from classrooms by next fall. Haidt, whose recently published book "The Anxious Generation" awakened Americans to the harmful effects of smartphones and social media on their children, spoke to The Free Press (TFP) recently, saying that parents and educators are now taking this problem seriously and are pushing for bans on the devices in schools. "I think we’re going to have the great majority of schools in the United States phone-free," Haidt told the outlet, pointing to next September as the probable point for when schools will have banned smartphones. ENTERTAINMENT INSIDER SAYS ESG FUNDING IS WHY WOKE ENTERTAINMENT KEEPS GETTING MADE DESPITE LOSING AUDIENCES  The outlet’s report on Haidt’s influence opened by describing how schools have been looking to curb students’ access to smartphones in recent years, with educators worried that the devices have absorbed kids’ attention in the classroom, a dynamic they say came from the social isolation and virtual learning pushed during the COVID-19 pandemic. "They looked at me like I was just going ‘wah, wah, wah,’" Seaside School District teacher Suzanna Kruger told The Free Press, describing her students on their phones in the classroom following a year of distance learning.&nbsp; She added "that most kids in her class were either asleep with their heads on their desks, wearing headphones, or doing a ‘dead-eyed scroll’ through TikTok. And when she asked them to turn over their device, she said most students just ‘refused,’" the outlet stated. As Kruger and other educators picked up on this problem, Seaside and other school districts recently decided to ban the devices in schools. CLICK HERE FOR MORE COVERAGE OF MEDIA AND CULTURE  "Seaside has joined thousands of schools nationwide in recently banning smartphones, as a growing body of evidence shows they’re linked to falling test scores and rising rates of teen mental illness," the report stated, adding that similar bans will go into effect after the winter break for schools in Virginia, South Carolina, and California. The outlet pointed to Haidt as one of the major reasons this awareness of smartphone harm has spread so quickly. The report’s author, Olivia Reingold, wrote, "So why is this movement finally getting results now? I spoke to a dozen people—educators and activists and parents—and they all offered the same answer: Jonathan Haidt." The author’s book has been lauded by prominent figures on both the right and left, including Gov. Ron DeSantis – who banned smartphones from K-12 public schools in 2023 – former President Barack Obama, and Microsoft founder Bill Gates. Psychologist Jean Twenge told The Free Press, "There’s been a lot of progress in the last year after years of relatively slow progress. A lot of that has to do with Jon’s book—it really pushed the conversation even more into the forefront. It’s inspired a lot of principals and superintendents to put stricter rules in place." POLICE ISSUE WARNING ABOUT DANGEROUS NEW TIKTOK CHALLENGE SWEEPING US, MULTIPLE ARRESTS MADE  The outlet described the book’s approach to achieving Haidt’s "Great Rewiring of Childhood," which requires implementing four "foundational rules." "They are: 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 that he’s "astounded" by how quickly awareness of this problem has spread, stating, "The only other example of social change I’ve seen that has moved this quickly is the fall of the Iron Curtain." The psychologist argued that many parents have opposed the idea of giving their children smartphones, but have fallen to social pressure over the years. "Every parent thought, ‘I don't want to give my kid a smartphone at the age of 10, but she comes home and tells me, ‘Mom, I’m the only one.’ That’s the magic phrase—‘I’m the only one who doesn't have one,’" he said. Now, however, he noted that parents and educators are finally starting to resist now that "it’s clear that all the schools" are in favor of banning them. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP