Students under cellphone ban in FL school district have better test scores, fewer absences: study

Students under a cellphone ban in a Florida school district had better test scores and fewer absences, according to a study.

A study from the National Bureau of Economic Research showed that students have improved at school after there was initially an increase in suspensions for violating the ban, after Florida implemented a statewide cellphone ban in schools in 2023, NewsNation reported Wednesday.

The study shows disciplinary incidents leveling out and an increase in test scores by about two or three percentiles compared to scores before the ban, according to the researchers. Also, the study found that, especially among middle and high school students, unexcused absences decreased.

The study is not peer-reviewed and examined only one large Florida school district. But researchers said it is the first evidence of the effects of a statewide cellphone ban.

Florida was the first state to pass a school cellphone ban law, but a majority of states have followed.

At four school districts in Connecticut, superintendents said they saw academic improvement and improved mental health among students.

Meanwhile, the Lakeside High School principal, near Atlanta, said that faculty saw a positive change in student behavior after banning phones during the school day.