There is a proposal before Congress that would ban the use of smartphones in schools.
The proposal is Senate Bill No. 2706: An Act Prohibiting the Use of Mobile Devices and Other Electronic Gadgets During Class Hours from Kindergarten to Senior High School in All Public and Private Education Institutions.
The bill was introduced in June of 2024 by Sen. Win Gatchalian of Valenzuela. The bill is currently pending in the Senate Committee on Basic Education, Arts and Culture, presumably awaiting a report from the Department of Education..
In explanatory notes when he introduced the bill, Sen. Gatchalian wrote that, although electronic gadgets are useful learning tools, they “cause distractions that could adversely impact learning, especially among learners at the basic education level.”
In support of this observation, Gatchalian referred to a 2019 scientific research report entitled “The Effects of Smartphone Use on Learning” from the University of Washington in the United States.
The study was not a single study, but a so-called “meta-analysis”, a synthesis of several previous studies — of 40 studies in this case.
The meta-analysis found a statistically significant negative correlation between smartphone addiction and learning outcomes. There was a small but meaningful adverse effect. The word “small” needs to be put into context, however: Catanduanes has more than 250 elementary and secondary schools with 80,000 students, so any “small” effect like this is magnified across tens of thousands of children.
More specifically, the meta-analysis found that there is a clear decline in academic performance associated with smartphone use. Students with higher levels of smartphone addiction tend to have lower academic achievement, including reduced test scores, gradepoint averages, and classroom engagement.
Also, the strength of the negative effects varies depending on factors like age group, cultural context, and type of academic task. For example, the impact is more pronounced in younger students in some task settings.
As for Senate Bill 2706, there is a good chance that Sen. Gatchalian’s proposal will be approved by the Senate committee. Not only is Sen. Gatchalian the chair of the committee, but also the proposal has broad support outside of Congress, and it follows global trends.
A 2024 public opinion survey by Pulse Asia, a major public opinion polling firm in Manila, found that 76 percent of Filipinos favor banning phones in schools.
And a 2022 study by PISA — the Programme for International Student Assessment, administered by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development —shows a clear link between cellphone distraction and lower academic performance among Filipino students.
In the PISA study, 8 of 10 Filipino students aged 15 reported being distracted in class by using smartphones. Even students not using smartphones said they were distracted by other students using smartphones around them. Furthermore, smartphone use during class correlated with a decrease in performance of about 9.3 points in mathematics, 12.2 points in science and 15.04 points in reading, according to the PISA study.
The bill also would align the Philippines with international trends. UNESCO’s 2023 Global Education Monitoring Report advocated strict smartphone regulations in classrooms.
Indeed, smartphone bans are now in effect in schools in at least 79 political jurisdictions, including France, China, Australia, the United States, Brazil and Saudi Arabia. At the school level, some schools in Indonesia and Singapore ban smartphones, for example.
Aside from concerns about academic performance, smartphone use is correlated with reduced attention span, cheating in school, cyberbullying, social isolation, sleep deprivation, and mental health problems — anxiety, depression and low self-esteem. These observations are widely documented in dozens of academic research reports.
The most common counterargument against smartphone bans is that smartphones are useful learning tools. However, smartphone penetration in local schools is estimated to be only 40-60 percent, meaning that the students from poorer families face a strategic disadvantage in the classroom. This raises significant ethical concerns.
Proposed Policy on Smartphones in Schools
The following is a set of guidelines prohibiting the use of smartphones in schools based on Sen. Gatchalian’s senate bill:
As a general rule, all smartphones and other electronic gadgets must be turned off and kept in bags or designated lockers during class hours, from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Use of smartphones and other electronic gadgets is prohibited during class, school events, assemblies, and examinations, unless explicitly authorized by a teacher.
Exceptions include use of electronic devices for instructional activities approved by the teacher such as research. Another exception is for health or emergencies, including communication with caregivers. Also excluded is smartphone use by students unable to attend classes, such as students with disabilities or special learning needs.
Violations and consequences include, after the first offense, a verbal warning and parent notification; after the second offense, confiscation for 3 school days and a written reflection by the student on the use of smartphones in the classroom; after the third offense, there will be confiscation for 2 weeks and a parent-teacher conference; and after the fourth offense, suspension of smartphone privileges for the semester.
Confiscated devices will be secured by the office of student affairs and returned only to parents or guardians.
Bryce McIntyre, PhD, resides in San Andres. He holds a doctoral degree from Stanford University, Palo Alto, California, USA.