November 3, 2026
IN RECENT YEARS, support for restricting cellphone use in the nation’s public schools has grown dramatically. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, 42 states, Washington, DC, and Puerto Rico have passed legislation restricting cellphone use in K-12 public schools.
Proponents of these bans cite studies that find they improve classroom dynamics, with teachers in schools that have instituted stricter restrictions reporting greater satisfaction, less disruption, and more focused classrooms.
However, opponents note that research on student outcomes, including test scores, attendance, and bullying, has found limited effects. They point to studies showing that, in the years after these bans were instituted, some schools saw increases in disciplinary actions such as suspensions, and argue that these bans adversely affect parents’ ability to communicate with their children, particularly during emergencies and for children with medical conditions or disabilities.
In the Commonwealth, about 80 percent of the state’s school districts have adopted some form of cellphone policy or restriction, according to the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents. Boston Public Schools, the state’s largest school district, recently announced plans for a “comprehensive bell-to-bell ban on all personal electronic devices,” which includes phones, laptops, tablets, smartwatches, and smartphones, beginning at the start of the 2027-28 school year.
Are these policies popular among residents of the Bay State? Since 2024, we have asked a representative sample of Massachusetts residents, “Do you support or oppose restricting the use of cellphones by public school students during official school hours, except for an emergency or a medical condition or disability?” We find widespread support for these restrictions, with about 3 in 4 residents expressing support for the ban in four surveys since October 2024, as shown in the figure below
In our most recent poll, close to eight in 10 expressed support for these restrictions, and the policy is supported by majorities of all gender, generational, class, and racial groups.
Restrictions on cell phones are overwhelmingly popular among Democrats (79 percent), Republicans (80 percent), independents (74 percent), liberals (83 percent), moderates (75 percent), conservatives (79 percent). Put in terms of the last presidential contest, restrictions are backed by identical shares of Harris (79 percent) and Trump (79 percent) voters.
Notably, parents are especially supportive, with 86 percent of adults with children under 18 supporting restrictions, compared with 76 percent of those without children under 18.
Our findings are largely consistent with a December 2025 EdTrust-Massachusetts poll conducted by the MassINC Polling Group, which also found broad majority support for a ban on cellphones and smartwatches.
To date, the Legislature has debated the issue, but not passed legislation.
Proposals to restrict cellphone use in schools have passed in different forms in the House and Senate. They must be reconciled by a conference committee of House and Senate members before the session ends on January 5 or the process will have to start over in the new two-year legislative session begins after that date.
Meanwhile, local school districts, including the state’s largest school district, are increasingly moving forward on their own, creating a patchwork of local policies in the absence of statewide action.
With the public strongly in support of restricting cellphone use in schools, state legislators on Beacon Hill can be confident that legislation creating a uniform, statewide policy on cellphone use would be well-received.
Tatishe Nteta is Provost Professor of Political Science at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and director of the UMass Poll. Jesse Rhodes is a professor of political science at UMass Amherst and co-director of the UMass Poll. Jesse Usher Barrett is a PhD student in political science at the UMass Amherst and a graduate research fellow for the UMass Poll. Sydney Brake is a PhD student in political science at UMass Amherst and a graduate research fellow for the UMass Poll.
Courtesy of Commonwealth Beacon
