District says phone-pouch program linked to lower disciplinary incidents and higher engagement
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Summary
North Clackamas School District officials reported data showing fewer classroom phone uses, improved student engagement and a roughly 25% drop in several categories of disciplinary incidents after rolling out phone-pouch (Yondr) procedures across secondary schools.
Assistant Superintendent of Education Yvonne Diddley told the board that interim data from the district's phone-pouch pilot shows measurable shifts in student behavior and engagement after the district asked students to keep phones in sealed pouches during the school day.
Diddley said adults working with students reported striking results on a staff survey: “98% seen a positive impact, 95% are seeing more student engagement,” and 94% reported fewer distractions in class, according to materials presented to the board.
The presentation cited student-survey improvements as well: the share of students reporting phone use in classrooms fell from 89% last year to under 3% this year, and 49% of students reported “more time for teachers and students to teach and learn.” Diddley told the board, “Phones have a constant pull,” and said the program asks students to “make this decision once” each day to step away from their digital lives.
District staff who presented discipline data said behavioral referrals declined in multiple categories year-over-year. The presenters reported a 31% drop in referrals for defiance, a 30% decline in disruptive behavior and an overall 25% reduction across the shown categories. The staff review noted many prior phone-related referrals explicitly referenced phones or social-media continuation of conflicts from home.
Board members pressed presenters on social-emotional effects and whether the change could improve academic outcomes. Diddley and her team said the district is tracking youth-truth (student-survey) measures of belonging and mental-health indicators and will continue to monitor spring assessment results to see whether reduced distraction correlates with measurable academic gains. The presenters said schools are pairing the policy with classroom- and lunch-time activities designed to rebuild in-person social connection, and that local staff and students have begun to report more face-to-face interaction.
Implementation details presented to the board included a five-year device plan and operations work to support pouches. The district purchased pouches through a vendor used by other districts; staff said expected losses of pouches were lower than the vendor's warning (under 3% loss reported versus vendor-expected up to 8%). Diddley said the district plans ongoing communications in the coming year to keep the practice consistent across buildings and to collect more data.
Board members praised the report and asked the district to return with longer-term youth-truth and assessment data. Several board members said they would like future updates that include student voices on belonging and mental health.