‘This is 2026. Wake up!’: Gee says cell phone ban debate misses the real problem as Ursula pushes back

New research from Stanford, the University of Pennsylvania, Duke, and the University of Michigan found that cell phone bans in schools produced essentially zero overall improvement in academic achievement, attention, or attendance. The finding hits close to home as Washington’s superintendent and governor pushed every school to adopt similar policies.

Gee Scott and Ursula Reutin, co-hosts of “The Gee and Ursula Show” on KIRO Newsradio, had different takeaways from the findings.

The researchers compared outcomes at approximately 4,600 schools that use Yondr pouches, where students lock away their phones during the school day. High school students saw a small bump, particularly in math, but middle school students saw a slight decline. Suspensions also jumped about 16% during the first year schools introduced the pouches, though that spike disappeared after the initial year.

Gee said the study revealed a larger issue that school curricula are outdated and not preparing students for the real world.

“Today’s school curriculum was for yesterday,” Gee said. “Today, there’s a new sheriff in town. Kids need to be prepared on how to get out here into the world. AI is taking jobs. Teach them entrepreneurship. Do something.”

He added that regardless of where someone lands on the cell phone debate, the focus should be on preparing kids for the future.

“Whether it’s cell phone or not cell phone, I just hope that the thinkers, that the experts, that know more than me, actually come to a decision to be like, ‘What can we do to make our kids more prepared?'” Gee said.

‘Give it some time’: Ursula defends cell phone bans despite research findings

Ursula pushed back, saying she’s not ready to write off cell phone bans based on one study measuring short-term effects. She noted that one of the researchers cautioned against concluding that bans don’t work, saying some benefits may take longer to emerge.

“Would you say that kids today are worse when it comes to face-to-face interaction because of cell phones?” Ursula asked.

“Yes,” Gee responded.

“Yes, exactly. Me too,” Ursula said. “Is there more cyberbullying because kids have so much access to their phones?”

“Yes,” Gee said.

“So I think even though if they say, well, there’s no real finding here that it actually improves their attendance or improves their attention, I would say give it some time,” Ursula said. “But the ones that really notice the big difference are the teachers. The teachers were saying, ‘We love having these cell phone bans because it has dramatically reduced the amount of inappropriate cell phone usage.’ They’re not constantly having to put away your phone, put away your phone. I mean, that alone is a good enough reason.”

‘Not all kids are the same in school’: Gee says schools only celebrate one type of student

Gee circled back to his broader point, arguing that school success is measured too narrowly and leaves too many students behind.

“When you’re in school, success appears on a report card, and the report card is driven basically on the grades that you get in a class, and tests are a big deal,” Gee said. “So that means your name could be Gee, you could get really good grades, but you’re the biggest jerk in the world, but you get great grades. I’m speaking for myself.

“Not all kids are the same in school,” he continued. “‘Oh, little Johnny is really good, but he talks too much’. ‘Oh, and little Sarah, she is just a darling. She does everything she’s supposed to do. She’s quiet.’ School curriculums today only celebrate the child that does it exactly this way, one way, not the other nine ways.”

Ursula acknowledged Gee’s point about life skills but said she’s heard from teachers who push back on the idea that everything is outdated.

“Every time we bring this up, I hear from teachers who say, ‘When was the last time you were in a classroom?'” Ursula said. “It’s been a minute since I’ve been in a classroom, so I’m not going to say everything’s outdated because I think it also depends on which schools you go to.”

Gee didn’t back down.

“If you run into somebody who says, ‘This is how we’ve always done it,’ run,” Gee said. “This is 2026. Wake up!”

Watch the full discussion in the video above.

Listen to Gee and Ursula on “The Gee and Ursula Show” weekday mornings from 9 am to 12 pm on KIRO Newsradio.