What if one of the simplest changes to a classroom could help students learn more effectively? 📱🧠
A large randomized experiment involving 16,683 students across 10 higher education institutions in Odisha, India, examined what happens when students must put their phones away during lectures. Published in Science in October 2026, the study reported a modest but statistically significant improvement in end-of-semester GPA under the phone-free policy. The gains were particularly pronounced among students with lower prior academic performance and first-year undergraduates.
But the most interesting finding may be what didn't change: researchers found no consistent increase in class attendance. Instead, the results point toward a possible role for attention and reduced digital distraction. Earlier research by Ward and colleagues also found that a smartphone's mere presence can reduce available cognitive capacity in experimental settings.
Discover what the evidence reveals, why the benefits may be unequal, and what remains uncertain before schools adopt stricter phone policies.
Sungu, A., Choudhury, P. K., & Bjerre-Nielsen, A. (2026). Phones impede learning: Evidence from a massive phone-free classroom experiment. Science, 394(6820), 178–181. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aef7249
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