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Brazil Marks One Year of School Phone Limits as Education Ministry Orders National Study

Educators report improved attention despite uneven adoption.

Overview

  • On the policy’s one-year mark, the Education Ministry said it will run a nationwide study in the first half of 2026 to gauge implementation and early impacts.
  • The 2025 law restricts phones during classes, recess and extracurricular activities with exceptions for pedagogical use, accessibility needs and emergencies.
  • Teachers, students and school managers report greater focus in lessons and more face-to-face interaction during breaks since the restrictions began.
  • Implementation remains gradual and uneven, with initial resistance from some students and families easing and Ceará’s state network acknowledging no formal impact monitoring.
  • The ministry has distributed guides, lesson plans and awareness materials to support schools, citing heavy national screen time and PISA data on classroom distraction as context.