No Smartphones Until High School: Regulate Before it's Too Late?

Should smartphones be regulated?

For the past 15 years, iPhones and Androids have grazed the palms and pockets of nearly everyone alike. In the grand scheme of things, "15 years" is just a scratch on the surface. The trend of cell phones is one that isn't going away anytime soon...

Historically, societies have used regulation for order and peace. The drinking age is 21. The voting age is 18. Driver's Licenses are earned at 16, and so on. When policy reform happens, it takes a team of bureaucratic professionals and psychologists to conjure the most practical response to a communal issue. In this case, it shouldn't take a genius to see the damages caused by early exposure to social media and brain rot from too much screen time. Though there are countless research studies on this topic, I've already seen it firsthand as a mother and teacher.   

Growing up in the 1990's

When I was 13, we had one family computer- in the living room. Out of the five kids in the house, we each had to wait our turn to give the old dinosaur computer a poke. Downloading a picture took about 30 seconds (a lifetime!) to load, and the excitement of being able to be pen-pals with someone so easily was enticing. America Online (AOL) was the platform we used to sign up for our first emails. I remember Oregon Trail being one of the only games we could play on the green and black screen. I was more interested in my Sega Genesis. 

Fast forward to 2002. I'm 17, and now there are two computers in the house. I'm spending way too much time on Rollercoaster Tycoon and The Sims. I had also learned to code from tinkering with MySpace. My Dad, an engineer, is busy using AutoCad software to design his sprinkler systems. With the onslaught of technology, engineers and architects were slowly moving away from sketching detailed blueprints on long rolls of paper to digital file uploads that could be easily managed and sent. 

I was 25 when I first purchased an smartphone, it was an Android, and it changed my life. It was literally a hand-held computer that I could use for nearly anything. I remember thinking how foreign this device was, not even realizing the potential it could hold...

Concerning Data

According to a recent article, Social Media Messed Up Our Kids, the author states four standards that should be considered in establishing device regulations:

1. No phones before high school

2. No social media before 14

3. No phones at school

4. Resume play-based childhood

In my experience, taking the phones away at school has proven to be very beneficial. Out of the three middle schools in my district, only one has a strict no-cell phone policy in which students and parents sign a contract at the beginning of the school year which entails the consequences of having a smartphone on campus. If a student absolutely insists on bringing one, they are allowed to bring it to the front office when the school day begins to which it is placed in a labeled plastic sandwich bag, and it is returned at the end of the day.

This rule has not only increased student attention span in class, but has also deterred kids from even wanting to bring a phone onto campus. If they need to use a phone, there is one plugged into the wall in every classroom. Of course, we have those parents that absolutely need to get ahold of their children during the day (teachers- hold your opinions!) and of course the comfort of GPS, of knowing your child is where they ought to be.

There are some benefits with the smartphone generation. I can definitely say that my teenager has learned a thing or two from her device. In the end, it's all about how we use the precious time given to us with this relatively new "world at our fingertips."