This fall, M-A launched a new phone pocket policy mandating students to store their devices in phone pockets during class time. The change comes as part of a statewide movement led by Governor Gavin Newsom’s Phone-Free School Act. Newsom’s act, signed in 2024, requires all California public and charter schools to implement a policy limiting or banning cell phone use during school hours by July 1, 2026.
Under M-A’s own policy, students must place their phones and other electronic devices, like AirPods, into wall-mounted pockets at the start of class, with access only during brunch and lunch. Teachers may allow phones for instructional purposes, and exceptions can be made for emergencies or students with IEP or 504 accommodations.
Similar policies have been tested by individual teachers in past years, but this marks the first time it has been made a requirement for all classrooms.
While schools can design their own systems, the law emphasizes reducing distractions, with exceptions for emergencies and academic use. California now joins at least eight other states, including Florida and Ohio, in passing laws to curb phone use in schools.
For some students, the shift has been beneficial. Senior Maya Frost said the rule has helped her concentrate. “It’s better for retention in classes, people aren’t gonna get as distracted by their phones,” Frost said. “[It can be] kind of annoying when you want to check the time or if you finish your classwork and there’s nothing left to do.”
For incoming Bears, this policy is a change of pace. Freshman Oliver Carmel noticed an improvement from the phone policy at Hillview Middle School, where students were simply required to keep their phones in their backpacks. “I feel like it enhances my overall performance,” Carmel said. “I think it boosts my focus.”
Senior Apple Hopgood emphasized that the policy may be most useful for underclassmen. “I think it’s really beneficial for freshmen because I feel like a lot of them are actually phone addicts,” Hopgood said.
Others, though, have found the policy to be frustrating and inefficient. Freshman Julianne Morrissey explained that she sometimes forgets her phone in the pocket, forcing her to backtrack between classes. “That makes me late to class often, which can make my attendance scores lower,” Morrissey said.
Junior Aryn Roodman offered a different perspective, arguing that students need to learn accountability with phones. “I think to build responsibility, students should have their phones,” Roodman said. “Once college hits, they will have their phone no matter what. So by building responsibility of not using a phone during class in high school, it can help you with college.”
Social Studies teacher Ellen Jacobson, who has taught at M-A for 20 years, is enthusiastic about the policy. “I love it, love it,” she said. “I am a firm believer that unless there’s a particular reason you need your phone out on your desk, it should be put away.”
She has already noticed students staying more engaged, though she pointed out that devices can still be distracting in other ways. “They’re definitely more focused [without phones],” Jacobson said. “But again, if they have their computers out, especially if they’re their own devices, I know they’re messaging each other, and so then it’s lost, right?”
Once college hits, they will have their phone no matter what. So by building responsibility of not using a phone during class in high school, it can help you with college.
– Junior Aryn Roodman
For English and AVID teacher Rachael Wan, who was part of a pilot program for the pockets last year, the decision to implement the policy schoolwide was about creating unity among staff.
During the pilot, all participating teachers followed the same rules: phones go in the phone pockets during class unless otherwise said by teachers, and data was collected throughout the year. The results were regularly reviewed, shared with staff and administration, and showed that the policy was effective. Based on this success, they advocated for expanding the policy schoolwide.
English teacher Erin Walsh, who copiloted the policy with Wan, explained that they, alongside a group of 11 other freshman teachers, spent a year collecting data to present to the administration. “We met with admin quite a few times, and kind of just pushed for, ‘Hey, this is working, and I think that it would work even better if the whole school did it,’” Walsh said.
Over the summer Wan and Walsh used their research to create a clear policy, which was then implemented by a small number of teachers the following year. Wan and Walsh also conducted another pilot study, requiring 30 student volunteers across grade levels to go bell-to-bell without their phones during the same year.
“It also allowed a lot of the ninth-grade teachers to have the same policy, so students couldn’t be like, ‘Oh, well, this teacher does this. This teacher does a different thing,’” Wan said. In past years, this inconsistency weakened individual teachers’ ability to regulate phone usage.
Wan is especially concerned about how phones affect the developing brain. “I feel really strongly about the role that phones play in a lot of our brain development, especially for young people whose brains are currently changing,” Wan said. “For adults, [phones are] already addicting, and we all acknowledge that. But we also have fully developed frontal cortices.”
I feel really strongly about the role that phones play in a lot of our brain development, especially for young people whose brains are currently changing.
– Rachael Wan, English and AVID teacher
She recalled one experiment when she gave students a break from class, giving them free time. “Everyone got their phones and it was quiet, and [they were] just staring down at their phones, kind of consumed by that,” Wan said.
Walsh noticed students now appear more confident in class. “People are less afraid of saying things that might be embarrassing or incorrect because there’s no one filming,” she said.
For her, the main issue was how phones were eroding students’ ability to learn. “Phones in the classroom are a distraction, and were really starting to take away from students accessing what we were trying to teach,” Walsh said. She also noticed that phones began to replace human connection. “There’s not as much face-to-face connection. Students aren’t talking to each other as much when there’s free time, it’s just immediately using phones rather than chatting with each other,” she added.
“I think students absolutely know how to use your phones in a responsible way, but I think there’s sometimes when you’re with 29 other people, sometimes you can feel almost like peer pressure, like if everyone else is using their phone, you feel like you have to use your phone because it’s awkward to be out of the norm,” Walsh said.
Walsh admitted she understands the temptation herself. “As someone who has a phone, sometimes I want to sit and scroll,” Walsh said, “But I remember parts of my high school career, sometimes the best parts of class were the last 10 minutes where you could just chat and laugh with your friends.”
While some Bay Area schools have adopted Yondr pouches. Lockable sleeves that keep phones inaccessible throughout the day. Walsh said she prefers the flexibility of classroom phone pockets.
“I like the phone pockets,” Walsh said. “I like the ability to have students use their phones as a tool if I want them to use them. If you want to go turn some music on and have your headphones play like that, I like having that option.”
I think students absolutely know how to use your phones in a responsible way, but I think there’s sometimes when you’re with 29 other people, sometimes you can feel almost like peer pressure, like if everyone else is using their phone, you feel like you have to use your phone because it’s awkward to be out of the norm.
– Erin Walsh, English teacher
Schools like San Lorenzo High and San Mateo High have turned to Yondr, citing fewer disruptions and more face-to-face interaction, but the stricter approach has also drawn criticism from students who feel it is overly restrictive.
English teacher Lisa Otsuka, who has taught at M-A for 34 years, voiced her appreciation for technology. “Phones are awesome, because you have information at your fingertips,” she said.
Still, Otsuka worries about what it does to students’ attention spans. “You absolutely can’t learn anything if you can’t pay attention,” Otsuka said.
Whether students love or hate the new system, M-A’s phone pockets are here to stay. Interviewed teachers say they have already seen improvements in focus and classroom connection, while students continue to adjust to the new routine.
