Schools across the United States have been turning to the YONDR phone pouch in response to the growing concerns over cell phone use during school hours. The Seattle Children’s Research Institute found that ”[A]dolescents spent an average of 1.5 hours on smartphones during their 6.5 hours of school.” To help limit this issue, use of the YONDR pouch is spreading across the American school system
The YONDR pouch is a magnetic locking green and grey bag used to temporarily lock students’ phones from the moment they step inside the door until they leave. Locking the phones all day in the YONDR pouches is creating concern for students and parents alike.The major concern is the rise in armed attacks on school premises. There have been 1,521 separate K-12 school shooting incidents from 2020-2025. Parents fear not being able to contact their children in case of emergency. It begs the question: Is putting the lives and safety of students (in the situation where contact is necessary) worth bringing down screen time? Robin Gurwitch, a psychologist who specializes in supporting children after disasters and other traumas said, “it is a very sad state of affairs that one of the reasons we think we have to have phones in the classroom is so when the shooting starts, students can call and say goodbye or let people know that this is happening.”
Initially, one may believe this could be revolutionary in terms of student attention span, but what may seem to be serviceable could end up being dangerous and a strain on tax money. According to Chalkbeat New York, NYC has now put $29 million behind the effort to use Yonder in New York City’s public schools. However, New York 4 reported, “New York City’s public schools are facing more than $400 million in cuts.” The state legislators took away millions in valuable learning resources just to pour in $29 million on the YONDR movement. Considering the New York school system has over 40% of students from third to eighth grade struggling with basic math and reading as well as an over 35% frequent absence rate, this money can easily go towards programs to address these issues. Instead of putting that money towards making a healthier and more secure educational environment, it is going towards pouches
Leylanis Mendez, a student at the High School of Telecommunication Arts and Technology in Brooklyn NYC has firsthand experience with the YONDR pouches and uses them daily. “What I’ve seen it’s only made students more sneaky,” Mendez said . Since the addition of the YONDR’s, there have been thousands of videos on social media attempting to help one another find ways around the system which now creates a constant distrust between students and educators.
“I feel like it was a waste of money and time…it would’ve been more effective and less expensive to only buy some and use them as punishments for those who don’t know when to not use their phone,” Mendez said.The idea of using it as a form of punishment rather than a day-to-day implementation can not only keep the student’s screen time to a minimum while in school but also teach teens phone responsibility to prepare them for the future.
Carleigh Mosser, a junior at West Morris Central, agreed that “Instead of using them for everybody, you can use them as a punishment.” Mosser then added that if YONDER is implemented at WMC, phone usage will become “worse because people will still find ways to use their phones or use them exponentially more after school instead of during school.” If anything it creates what is known as the Forbidden Fruit Effect. The White Hatter, an organization focusing on internet safety and digital literacy education wrote, “Teens, in particular, are known for pushing against boundaries.” leading to more behavioral issues and rebellion to those who believe they are helping the cause.If technology is framed as “bad” or “dangerous,” it doesn’t remove the draw, it amplifies it. What youth and teens need most is not avoidance or prohibitions, but support” reported The White Hatter.
“[I]n this day and age, we have a lot of school shootings. People will need to text their parents what’s happening, or if they have a medical emergency,” Mosser said, “I just think it’s, like, another issue instead of a solution to a problem”. What the main concern really boils down to is school safety: students are scared, parents are scared, and faculty are scared
Along with the “phone jails” there are useful and responsible ways to use phones in schools. On September 4, 2024, during a deadly school shooting taking place in Georgia, a new panic alert system popped onto the screens of hundreds of students. The alert notified students to lock doors, hide, and the system automatically notified authorities in the surrounding area. Georgia Bureau of Investigation Director Chris Hosey stated, “The protocols at this school and this system activated today prevented this from being a much larger tragedy.” YONDR is simply not the solution to the screen time issue. Cell phones aren’t going away any time soon and locking them in a pouch doesn’t teach teens to be responsible with them in school nor does it truly keep them safer.
January 3, 2024, Arianna Prothero of EducationWeek asked a variety of teachers over Facebook how they go about minimizing screen time in their classrooms. The overwhelming majority seemed to be having a simple heart-to-heart with their students, discussing how it hurts their grades more than the teachers’ lessons. Educator, Anne S. wrote “I have a talk with my high schoolers about the importance of self-regulation. Also talk about problems cellphones cause them as well as what is good about them. Then we have a nice discussion. I have very few problems with cellphone use in my classroom.” Teens can be very responsive to being addressed as an adult. Rather than talking down to teens , the school should talk to them.Instead of making the phones a “monster,” address how it is hurting the learning environment to them directly.
“The best solution to this issue is the “phone jail” we have here at WMC” Mosser said. “In our school, we have the phone pockets, but you can still access your phone if you really need to.” Being ABLE to get their phone alone adds a level of security to the lives of students. If America won’t regulate guns, why would they start regulating phones? There are bigger issues at hand.
