How to Liberate Classrooms from Cellphones

"The Backpack Method" and How to Create an (Essentially) Cellphone Free Classroom

Photo of an honor student putting a phone where it belongs!

I published an article on Tuesday about the harmful effects of cellphones in the classroom and the need to manage student phones in ways that minimize disruption and maximize learning. With Raising Americans, rather than just describing problems, I’m eager to offer possible solutions that can help. In that spirit, here’s how to implement what I call “The Backpack🎒Method.” It helps prevent the negative consequences associated with cellphones in the classroom that I described here while ensuring they are available for emergencies.

For those in a hurry, here’s the bottom line: 

Students keep phones in their backpacks from the moment they enter the classroom. No exceptions short of an emergency. 

Teachers, students, parents, and administrators all play important roles in making the approach work. Here are a few key guidelines, procedures, and tips for each group of stakeholders. As I have spent most of my years in education teaching high school, some of these ideas will need to be adapted for younger students. 

FOR TEACHERS

📚PLANS 

Before your students even step foot on campus for orientation day, make cellphone management plans. Even though students may only be in your classroom for a short time, you will be making an important first impression. How will you cultivate a warm yet demanding classroom culture where students behave in accordance with policies? 

Prepare your “No Phones in this Classroom” slide to be included in your first day of school slides. I chose not to have signs in the classroom as I felt this would create an authoritarian atmosphere. Instead, aim to create an internalized norm rather than a prohibitive ordinance.

📚CLASSROOM FURNITURE 

Depending on the number of students in your class, arrange desks in a U-shape formation or double layer U-shape formation that allows you to see every student directly. If your desks have storage, turn the storage area opening toward you (some students may conceal phones in the storage space). 

If you have a Harkness-style table around which students can meet, all the better! Students face one another around the table which makes it difficult to conceal the use of phones. 

📚ORIENTATION DAY  

Warmly greet each student at the door (great way to learn names early!) and if a student happens to have a phone in hand, respectfully ask them to turn it off, place it in the backpack, and zip it up. Tell them they will keep it in the backpack for the duration of class. “Ours is a phone-free classroom.” It may feel just a tad awkward saying this on the first meeting, but just counteract any awkwardness with sincere warmth and friendliness. Be sure not to make the student feel as if they have committed a crime! Say something like, “Just procedure…just forming new habits. So glad you are here, Eric!” with a smile. 

You should also ask students to remove earbuds (I refer to earbuds as “plastic things in your ears” to shake up the earbud paradigm a bit). You may need to ask several students to do this. A line may begin to form at the door and flood out into the hallway, but just stay calm and continue to greet each child one at a time. Your wonderful students will eventually get the idea. They will usually begin turning the phones off and placing their electronics in backpacks before they reach you. If a student is wearing a hoodie, ask her to lower it as students may be tempted to use it to conceal the earbuds. “I’m so glad you are here, and I want to see you and hear from you, Sue!” 

During this first short orientation before classes start (some schools may skip orientation or handle things differently), students may begin using phones out of habit. Gently remind them that there are no phones in your classroom. Before the end of orientation, let the students know that on the first day of school, you will expect them to have the phones turned off, in the backpack, and kept in the backpack before they walk through the doorway. They cannot remove the phone until after they have exited the doorway at the end of class. 

📚FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL

As during orientation, greet students warmly at the door, using each child’s name, and make gentle corrections if necessary. Don’t let students in the classroom until they have put away the phones and earbuds! Remind them about how happy you are to have them in class – sharing your enthusiasm for your students, your school, your subject and content, and for education itself. Then dive into policies, but keep it short. 

Emphasize the phone policy without being an authoritarian. Explain how each person in the class is an essential member of “our” intellectual community. You can say things such as: “We need your ideas and contributions. You will learn more and other students will as well. We only have 90 minutes together, so let’s make the most of it! Be present. Talk to real 3D people here rather than 2D people who are not here.” 

Be merciful during the first week of school and actually tell them you are being merciful as they learn new habits. Give warnings during the first week, but inform them that “next week, there will be consequences for getting out the phone.” One infraction = warning. Two = contact parents. Three = referral (or whatever works at your school and works for you as a teacher). 

📚AND THE REST OF THE YEAR… 

Model proper phone use. Avoid using your phone at all unless there is an emergency or for a legitimate purpose such as streaming Mozart to a bluetooth speaker while students are working. 

Do everything you can to meet and greet students at the door every day of the school year. Remind them about putting the phone in the backpack if necessary. Don’t let them in the classroom until they have put the phone (and earbuds) in the backpack! 

Keep students engaged during the entire class whether working in large or small groups. Try to avoid being at your desk. You are always “with” your students and available for them, circulating among them. Show them how much you care about them by being present for them and treating them with respect. 

At the end of class each day, you may find that students may reach for their phones in order to avoid socializing with their classmates. You will need to be extra vigilant at this time. Try not to let students line up at the door. Instead, they should stay near their seats. If a student forgets the policy and pulls out the phone, say, “Annie, you don’t need that! Why don’t you talk with Sarah instead?! She’s such a fascinating person and standing right here next to you!” Then stay there and help them get a conversation going. Help the students develop social skills and make friends with one another. I did this countless times and ended up brokering friendships that lasted beyond the duration of our class. Stand at the door and say goodbye to each student as they exit. Praise students for specifics as you recall moments from class and as time allows.

Have large group Harkness (round table) discussions as much as you possibly can. The goal is to build a classroom where students know they are respected and valued members of the intellectual community. Emphasize that in your classroom, they can enjoy liberation and freedom from their phones. More on Harkness in future articles! 

Photo Credit: Phillips Exeter Academy

Be just, consistent, and appropriately merciful in your enforcement of the policy.  

For repeat offenders, ask the student to place the phone on your desk and return to his seat (the embarrassment is usually a helpful deterrent for next time). The student can pick the phone up after class, and you can discuss details and consequences then.

To  protect the student’s dignity, remember to discuss disciplinary issues with a student outside the classroom. 

NOTE: Apple watches did not pose a problem for me as so few of my students owned them. I did ask that they be put in the backpack during exams. Issues and concerns with Apple watches may change in the future.

A GENERAL TIP FOR STUDENTS 

📚For student subscribers to Raising Americans… If you want to make the most of your time and maximize your chances for success in school, respect the rules and policies of your parents, your school, and your teacher. 

A FEW TIPS FOR PARENTS

📚Support your child’s teacher at home by speaking positively about school. Avoid speaking negatively about a child’s teacher within ear-shot of the child. 

📚Remind your student the phone is for emergencies only and is not to be removed from the backpack while they are in class. Make friends and visit with real people while in class. 

📚Model compartmentalization of phone use by routinely having family dinners together at a table and keep phones turned off and put away for the duration of the meal. 

📚Remind students that time spent on a phone in class risks missing vital information, damaging the relationship with the teacher, and hurting the learning environment.

TWO TIPS FOR ADMINISTRATORS 

📚Administrators can support teachers’ efforts to build no-phone-in-the-classroom habits by not asking students to use phones during non-academic instructional time such as auxiliary, homeroom, or advisory periods. Students should not be asked to use phones to scan a QR code or complete a survey. They can use computers or paper instead.

📚Support teachers whose students are referred to you for repeated inappropriate phone use. Students will watch to see the degree to which teachers are supported by administrators. Trust the judgment of excellent teachers and help ensure students learn the right lessons. I was fortunate to have the support of great administrators during my years as a teacher. 

Until the next post!

-Antonette

If you are a new reader, welcome! You can learn more about the purpose and origins of Raising Americans here. In addition, I hope you will check out my essay on “The Good American” – and what it means to raise a good American in the 21st century.