Isabella Pires first noticed what she calls the 鈥済radual apathy pandemic鈥� in eighth grade. Only a handful of classmates registered for service projects she helped organize at her Massachusetts school. Even fewer actually showed up.
When she got to high school last fall, Isabella found the problem was even worse: a lackluster Spirit Week and classes where students seldom spoke.
In some ways, it鈥檚 as if students 鈥渏ust care less and less about what people think, but also ,鈥� said Isabella, 14. Some teens, she said, no longer care about appearing disengaged, while others are so afraid of ridicule they keep to themselves. She blames and the lingering isolation of the post-COVID era.
Educators say their tried and true lesson plans are no longer enough to keep students engaged at a time of , shortened attention spans, and . At the crux of these challenges? Addiction to cell phones. Now, adults are trying new strategies to reverse the malaise.
are gaining traction, but many say they鈥檙e not enough. They argue for alternative stimulation: steering students outdoors or toward to fill time they might otherwise spend alone online. And students need outlets, they say, to speak about taboo topics without fear of being 鈥� 鈥� on social media.
鈥淭o get students engaged now, you have to be very, very creative,鈥� said Wilbur Higgins, lead English teacher at Dartmouth High School, where Isabella will be a sophomore this fall.
Lock them up
Cell phone pouches, lockers and bins have grown in popularity to .
John Nguyen, a chemistry teacher in California, invented a pouch system because he was so distressed by bullying and fights on phones during class, often without adults interfering. Many teachers are afraid to confront students using phones during lessons, Nguyen said, and others have given up trying to stop it.
At Nguyen鈥檚 school, students lock their phones in neoprene pouches during classes or even all day. A teacher or principal鈥檚 magnetic key unlocks the pouches.
It doesn鈥檛 matter how dynamic the lesson, said Nguyen, who teaches at Marina Valley High School and now markets the pouches to other schools. 鈥淭here鈥檚 nothing that can compete with the cell phone.鈥�
Do something (else)
Some schools are locking up smartwatches and wireless headphones, too. But the pouches don鈥檛 work once the final bell rings.
So in Spokane, Washington, schools are ramping up extracurriculars to compete with phones after hours.
An initiative launching this month, 鈥� 鈥� 鈥� in real life 鈥� aims to give every student something to look forward to after the school-day grind, whether it鈥檚 a sport, performing arts or a club.
鈥淚solating in your home every day after school for hours on end on a personal device has become normalized,鈥� Superintendent Adam Swinyard said.
Students can create clubs around interests like board games and knitting or partake in neighborhood basketball leagues. Teachers will help students make a plan to get involved during back-to-school conferences, the district says.
鈥淔rom 3 to 5:30 you are in a club, you鈥檙e in a sport, you鈥檙e at an activity,鈥� instead of on a phone, Swinyard said. (The district has a new ban on phones during class, but will allow them after school.)
At a time of , he also hopes the activities will be the extra push some students need to attend school. In a Gallup conducted last November, only 48% of middle or high school students said they felt motivated to go to school, and only 52% felt they did something interesting every day. The poll was funded by the Walton Family Foundation, which also supports at AP.
Vivian Mead, a rising senior in Spokane, said having more after-school activities helps but won鈥檛 work for everyone. 鈥淭here鈥檚 definitely still some people who just want to be alone, listen to their music, do their own thing, or, like, be on their phone,鈥� said Vivian, 17.
Her 15-year-old sister, Alexandra, said morning advisory sessions have improved participation in the drama club that keeps the sisters busy. 鈥淚t forces everyone, even if they don鈥檛 want to get involved, to have to try something, and maybe that clicks,鈥� she said.
Get outside
Thirteen middle schools in Maine adopted a similar approach, bringing students outdoors for 35,000 total hours during a chosen week in May.
It鈥檚 empowering for students to connect with each other in nature, away from screens, said Tim Pearson, a physical education and health teacher. His students at Dedham School participated in the statewide 鈥淟ife Happens Outside鈥� challenge.
Teachers adapted their lessons to be taught outdoors, and students bonded in the open air during lunch and recess. At night, about half of Dedham鈥檚 students camped, incentivized by a pizza party. Several students told Pearson they camped out again after the challenge.
鈥淲hether they had phones with them or not, they鈥檙e building fires, they鈥檙e putting up their tents,鈥� Pearson said. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e doing things outside that obviously are not on social media or texting.鈥�
Plea to parents
Parents must also make changes to their family鈥檚 cell phone culture, some teachers say. At home, Ohio teacher Aaron Taylor bars cellular devices when his own children have friends over.
And when kids are at school, with check-in texts throughout the day, he said.
鈥淪tudents are so tied to their families,鈥� said Taylor, who teaches at Westerville North High School, near Columbus. 鈥淭here鈥檚 this anxiety of not being able to contact them, rather than appreciating the freedom of being alone for eight hours or with your friends.鈥�
Fight fears of being 鈥榗anceled鈥�
Some say other forces behind teen disengagement are only amplified by the cell phone. The divisive political climate often makes students unwilling to participate in class, when anything they say can rocket around the school in a messaging app.
Taylor鈥檚 high school English students tell him they don鈥檛 talk in class because they don鈥檛 want to be 鈥� 鈥� 鈥� a term applied to public figures who are silenced or boycotted after offensive opinions or speech.
鈥淚鈥檓 like, 鈥榃ell, who鈥檚 canceling you? And why would you be canceled? We鈥檙e talking about `The Great Gatsby,鈥欌�� not some controversial political topic, he said.
Students 鈥済et very, very quiet鈥� when topics such as sexuality, gender or politics come up in novels, said Higgins, the Massachusetts English teacher. 鈥淓ight years ago, you had hands shooting up all over the place. Nobody wants to be labeled a certain way anymore or to be ridiculed or to be called out for politics.鈥�
So Higgins uses websites such as Parlay that allow students to have online discussions anonymously. The services are expensive, but Higgins believes the class engagement is worth it.
鈥淚 can see who they are when they鈥檙e responding to questions and things, but other students can鈥檛 see,鈥� Higgins said. 鈥淭hat can be very, very powerful.鈥�
Alarmed at her peers' disengagement, Isabella, Higgins鈥� student, wrote an opinion piece in her school鈥檚 newspaper.
鈥淧reventing future generations from joining this same downward cycle is up to us,鈥� she wrote.
A comment on the post highlighted the challenge, and what鈥檚 at stake.
鈥淎ll in all,鈥� the commenter wrote, 鈥渨hy should we care?鈥�
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Carolyn Thompson, The Associated Press
