There's one particular variable in all of these examples and videos that is conveniently elided by the authors, which is that most of these seem like inner-city schools. Children born into poverty with lackluster parenting are more likely to act out, the presence of social media notwithstanding.
The key point is that phones in school and elsewhere change the stakes by acting as informational weapons due to the social significance of what happens online. Our brains are not wired to interact in this way.<p>Some may argue that phones should be banned in schools, and I agree with that but I think it's a narrow-minded view. Phones should not be a thing at all in society. They create a new sort of psychological dependence that takes us away from being human.<p>I am happy I went to high school before phones were a thing. Almost no one had a phone although one or two students at a dumbphone. In my opinion, mobile computing devices are a mistake for humanity. Just like cars which have a speed limit on most roads, we should have an information limit and phones push us past that limit.<p>Shame on all tech companies who promote this technology.
Social media has been fueling fights in schools since at least 2005. And probably well before that if you loosen the definition of social media.<p>I’m sure phones are a problem, but school administrators have always preferred to blame everyone but themselves for their lack of control over discipline and bullying.