NEW DELHI: Even as most schools ban mobile phones, many students continue to use them through the day, and experts warn it may be quietly affecting their ability to focus and learn.The concern, teachers and doctors say, is not just screen time but how often students check their phones. Even brief interruptions can break concentration and make it harder for the brain to stay engaged.“Students continue to use phones despite school bans because they find it psychologically difficult to disconnect,” said Dr Nand Kumar, Prof in psychiatry department at AIIMS. “Phones provide a sense of constant connectivity and reduce anxiety, making them hard to put away.”On the ground, schools say enforcement remains uneven. “Aaye din bacche phone le aate hain. In some cases, there is a genuine concern — for instance, girls travelling from far-off areas may need to carry phones for safety. We allow limited use, but monitoring misuse like making reels or clicking pictures on campus is a challenge,” said Awadhesh Kumar Jha, principal of CM Shri School.Despite restrictions, students access phones between classes, during breaks or discreetly in lessons, with usage rising in higher classes. Experts say this leads to fragmented attention, where the brain keeps switching tasks instead of staying focused.Doctors said that behavioural addiction clinic at AIIMS are now seeing nearly 100 such cases every month, pointing to a growing pattern of problematic phone use among young people.Dr Kumar said frequent phone use disrupts attention and weakens retention and recall, directly affecting academic performance. Constant switching also leads to mental fatigue and reduced understanding.Adding context, Dr YPS Balhara from AIIMS psychiatry department, said the behaviour goes beyond rule-breaking. “It reflects habit formation and psychological dependence driven by instant rewards. When access is restricted, it creates discomfort that pushes students to bypass rules,” he said.He added that frequent checking may be more damaging than total screen time. “Each interruption creates a task-switching cost. The brain takes time to refocus, reducing efficiency and weakening attention span over time.”“Repeated checking conditions the brain to seek constant stimulation, gradually reducing attention span. Early signs often show up as poor sleep, low concentration and falling grades rather than obvious addiction, Dr Kumar noted.A recent international study has also flagged similar trends, noting that students spend a significant part of the school day on their phones and check them frequently, with links to poorer focus.For schools, the question remains whether bans are enough. Dr Balhara said restrictions alone offer only short-term control. “Students need to be taught how to manage their phone use. A balanced approach combining limits with behavioural guidance works better,” he said.
