Researchers from the U.S., India and Denmark conducted a large-scale educational experiment involving 16,700 students and 742 instructors at ten Indian colleges. Student cohorts were randomly split. From February to May 2024, students in one group handed in their smartphones before each lecture, leaving them in a box. The other group continued as usual.
At the end of the semester, the researchers compared students' average grades, accounting for their previous academic performance. Students in classes with the ban earned slightly higher grades on average. The effect was small but statistically significant.
The restrictions helped first-year students and those with lower grades the most. There was little effect on higher-performing students, postgraduate students, or those studying STEM subjects. Attendance did not change.
"Students experiencing the ban became significantly more supportive of phone ban policies," the study's lead researcherโฆ
@aitopics