AILSA CHANG, HOST:
High school students have thoughts about bans against cellphones at schools.
ADRIAHNA LOWE: I feel like it's not really fair for the most part.
CORRIE WHITE: I don't personally think it's - I don't think it should be a law, but I think it's also beneficial. So even if I don't want to accept that it's good for us, I think it is good for us.
CHANG: That was freshman Adriahna Lowe and junior Corrie White, high school students in the Indianapolis area. They recently started the school year under a new state law that restricts cellphones in schools, and they're not alone. At least seven states have passed similar laws or policies in the last couple years. So how is that playing out in the classroom? Well, Lee Gaines of member station WFYI visited two Indiana high schools to find out.
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JENNY GUIMONT: OK, guys. That's the bell.
LEE GAINES, BYLINE: It's a couple weeks into a brand-new school year at Lawrence North High School in Indianapolis. Math teacher Jenny Guimont is eager to start her algebra one class. But first...
GUIMONT: All phones, headphones, AirPods, tablets got to go in the bag. Zip them up, please.
GAINES: That's because a new Indiana state law now restricts the use of phones and other devices in schools. Last fall nearly three-quarters of U.S. high school teachers said cellphones were a major problem in classrooms. That's according to a study by Pew Research Center.
GUIMONT: Guys, listen up - inverse operations.
GAINES: In response to this problem, a handful of states have passed laws or enacted policies that aim to restrict the use of cellphones in schools. According to an Education Week analysis, six of these measures take effect this school year, including Indiana's.
GUIMONT: I'm overall very happy about it.
GAINES: That's teacher Jenny Guimont again.
GUIMONT: It makes my job easier to know that the law is behind me, you know, that basically now I have something to support my message.
GAINES: Prior to this year, it was up to each teacher at Lawrence North to decide if or how students could use their devices. Now under the law, unless a student needs it for a medical reason or a disability, they can't be on their phone during class. Lawrence North senior Taylor Smith says it's changed the way he uses his phone in school.
TAYLOR SMITH: I won't say that I needed, like, somebody else to tell me to get off my phone, but I will say that it's going to help me a great deal to have that thought in the back of my mind saying, wait. This is illegal.
GAINES: It's up to schools to come up with their own discipline procedures. At Lawrence North, students who have their phones out during class can get a referral, basically a note in their school records. They may also have to hand their phone over to a teacher for the rest of the class.
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GAINES: That's also true for students caught using their cellphones at Beech Grove High School, about a 20-minute drive south of Lawrence North. Beech Grove sophomore Jadon Howard says he used to secretly be on his phone during class.
JADON HOWARD: And last year I had a whole bunch of missing assignments.
GAINES: Now he wouldn't risk it.
JADON: And this year I feel like I'm paying attention more and more focused.
GAINES: But not all students agree the law has helped them.
GRACE WINGFIELD: Like, last year there was not a point in my day where I did not have a headphone in listening to something, and now I can't listen to anything.
GAINES: Grace Wingfield is a senior at Beech Grove. She says music helped her stay focused during quiet work time at school, and without it, she says she's struggling to concentrate.
WINGFIELD: I think that's probably the hardest part for me of this whole phone rule - just not having music.
GAINES: This is something I heard from a lot of students. Martin Barker, an instructional coach at Beech Grove, says headphones are a mixed bag.
MARTIN BARKER: Some students - that absolutely locks them in if they're really distracted by the classroom. But I have other students that, like, absolutely - music just completely distracts them. And they can't focus on what they're supposed to do.
GAINES: Barker thinks this law will benefit more than it will hurt, and he's already seeing students more focused on their schoolwork this year. His colleague, Beech Grove English teacher Josie Defreese, says she's noticed another benefit.
JOSIE DEFREESE: I feel like my classrooms are loud again.
GAINES: Last year, Dufree says, when students had downtime, their heads were buried in their phones, and it was quiet. This year that's changed.
DEFREESE: The kids turn to each other and talk, or they start drawing on my board, or they ask me for questions with their homework. And it just becomes a lot more lively, interactive environment.
GAINES: She hopes it stays that way. For NPR News, I'm Lee Gaines in Indianapolis.
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