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As part of the States Leading States initiative, the Center for Education Policy Research (CEPR) at Harvard University is working with several states, to study the impact of school cell phone use policies on student achievement and engagement. CEPR is partnering with Dr. Angela Duckworth at the University of Pennsylvania, who is administering the Phones in Focus survey, a national survey of teachers about school cell phone policies being implemented in their schools. CEPR is working with Dr. Duckworth and the Phones in Focus team to support survey participation in CEPR partner states, and CEPR will use the Phones in Focus survey data, state assessment data and student engagement data, to evaluate the impact of cell phone policies.

The 5-minute survey is 100% confidential. Participation is limited to educators at K-12 public schools in the U.S.

or navigate directly to www.phonesinfocus.org.

Participating educators may be eligible to win one of ten $500 gift cards from the Phones in Focus team

Thank you! Your response helps our research team learn more about how school cell phone policies affect children across the nation.

Why Now?

With the continued decline in student performance on the most recent NAEP exam, particularly for 12th graders and for the lowest-performing students, it has become even more urgent to understand why achievement has declined over the past decade and what can be done to reverse the trend. One of the most compelling hypotheses for these achievement trends is the ubiquity of cell phones and the increased use of social media in schools, distracting students from learning and contributing to negative perceptions of school climate and student engagement challenges. This study will help answer the question of whether cell phone restrictions can directly improve student achievement and increase student engagement in school.

Get Involved

For more information or to get involved, contact:

Scott Sargrad: scott_sargrad@gse.harvard.edu

Amber Humm Patnode: amber_hummpatnode@gse.harvard.edu