The Great Phone Ban begins 📱 (#115)

Welcome back! This week we're exploring a growing crisis in American education. While the adults argue about phones, grades and, test scores, students are... livestreaming hallway fights for TikTok clout.

Something's got to give.

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And now, let’s take a look back at the week that was.

💡THE BIG IDEA

The Pressure Cooker Problem

We've created the most supervised, scheduled, and "safe" generation in history.

And they're cracking.

This week, we saw it from every angle:

• 48% of teachers report student behavior in schools is "a lot worse" than pre-pandemic

• Jonathan Haidt's research shows kids spending record time "sitting on their beds with devices"

• States rushing to ban phones while ignoring the deeper issue

What's fascinating is where the problems surface. Not during structured class time, but in those brief moments of freedom – hallways, lunch periods, right after school.

It's not rebellion. It's release.

Think about it:

• Wake up, screens

• School, more screens

• After school, even more screens

• All while sitting still, inside, supervised

No tree climbing. No unsupervised play. No natural ways to test boundaries or release energy. Just pressure building in a system with no release valve.

Then we act surprised when it explodes.

Taking away phones in school might help, but it's like putting a lid on a pot that's already boiling over. The real solution might be simpler: let off some steam.

"Transformational learning is a process, not a singular event," writes Katie Martin at Learner-Centered Collaborative. Learning doesn't wait for school bells. It happens when kids fix bikes (engineering), argue about game rules (debate), or figure out how to earn money for something they want (economics).

Some schools are catching on. At Primer in Miami, students aren't just studying business concepts - they're developing products for farmer's markets and launching coding projects. They're turning that pent-up energy into real-world results.

Maybe the answer isn't tighter lids on our pressure cookers. Maybe it's building more release valves.

📊 TRENDS WE’RE WATCHING

• The Phone Wars Heat Up: New Jersey becomes the seventh state to ban phones in schools (meanwhile students average 9 hours daily on devices at home).

• Choice Hits Milestone: Florida passes 500k students using education scholarships, as microschools see waitlists grow across the state.

• Student misbehavior has skyrocketed: 48% of teachers say student behavior is "a lot worse" than pre-pandemic. Another 24% say it's "a little worse."

• Districts Drop Borders: Colorado reports 199k students now crossing district lines - the largest open enrollment experiment in US history.

🔨 TOOLS OF THE WEEK

• The Learning Scientists: Finally, cognitive science you can actually use. Their free guide breaks down why your kid's study habits might be making things worse (looking at you, highlighters).

• Snow Art Goes Viral: Parents discover regular markers work on snow. Your dried-up Crayolas just got a second life.

• Smithsonian Opens Its Vault: 200+ years of museum collections, now searchable from your couch. Digital field trips just got more interesting.

• StoryCon announces lineup: Neal Shusterman and Brandon Mull headline this February's writing conference in Salt Lake City (Feb. 21 - 22).

(TRIVIA) OF THE WEEK

The answer to yesterday’s trivia question, as 92% of you answered correctly, was WIND. Without stress from a strong breeze, trees never develop strong roots. There’s a metaphor in there somewhere.

Thanks for playing, y’all - come back real soon!

– Charlie (the OpenEd newsletter guy)