中文导读 越来越多国家和学校限制学生在校使用手机，但“收手机到底能不能帮助学习”一直缺少大规模实验证据。宾夕法尼亚大学沃顿商学院的 Alp Sungu 与哥本哈根大学的 Andreas Bjerre-Nielsen 等人在印度东部奥里萨邦（Odisha）的10所高校开展了一项随机对照试验，共有16,683名学生参与：在2024年春季学期里，一部分院系年级的学生每节课开始前必须把手机放进教室里的木制手机盒，另一部分照常使用手机。结果显示，“无手机课堂”的学生成绩平均提高0.073个标准差，研究者认为这一效果可与课程改革相当，而成本很低；原本成绩最差的学生提升约为平均值的两倍，一年级学生也受益更多，理工科课程则几乎没有变化。出勤率没有变化，课堂观察发现闲聊、干扰和手机使用都减少了，连不受限制的老师也更专注。亲身体验过的学生更支持这类规定。研究者也提醒，研究对象只是大学生，中小学的效果还需更多研究。文章按“问题—试验方法—总体结果—群体差异—原因解释—态度与边界”展开，阅读时可留意 may、possibly、seemed 等词如何表达推断的把握程度。
正文 Many schools around the world now ban smartphones , but there has been little strong evidence that such rules really help students learn . A new study in the journal Science offers one of the clearest answers so far . In a trial with more than 16,000 college students in India , asking students to put their phones in a box at the start of each class led to higher grades .
本段译文 如今世界各地有许多学校禁止使用智能手机，但关于这类规定是否真能帮助学生学习，一直缺少有力证据。发表在《科学》期刊上的一项新研究给出了迄今最清楚的答案之一。在一项有16,000多名印度大学生参与的试验中，要求学生每节课开始时把手机放进盒子，带来了更好的成绩。
The researchers worked with 10 higher education institutions in Odisha , a state in eastern India where more than 70 percent of young people aged 15 to 29 own a smartphone . They placed about 1,000 wooden phone boxes in classrooms . Groups of students were then chosen at random . In some groups , students had to leave their phones in the box before every lecture for a whole semester in 2024. Other groups kept using their phones as usual
本段译文 研究人员与印度东部奥里萨邦的10所高等教育机构合作。在该邦，15至29岁的年轻人中有超过70%拥有智能手机。他们在教室里放置了约1,000个木制手机盒。随后，学生被随机分成不同的组。在一些组里，2024年整个学期中，学生每次上课前都必须把手机留在盒子里；其他组则照常使用手机。
At the end of the semester , students in the phone-free classes had better grades on average . The improvement was 0.073 standard deviations , a measure that compares results across a whole group . That may sound small , but Alp Sungu of the Wharton School , who led the research , said it was similar to what schools might expect from changing what they teach . Unlike those programmes , he added , phone bans need very few resources
本段译文 学期结束时，无手机课堂的学生平均成绩更好。提高幅度为0.073个标准差，这是一种在整个群体内比较结果的衡量方式。这听起来可能不大，但领导这项研究的沃顿商学院学者 Alp Sungu 说，这与学校改变教学内容后可能期待的效果相近。他还补充说，与那些项目不同，禁用手机几乎不需要什么资源。
The benefit was not shared equally . Students who already had the lowest grades gained the most , about twice the average effect . First-year students also improved more , possibly because they were still forming study habits . In science and engineering courses , however , the ban made little difference . As a result , the gap between stronger and weaker students became smaller .
本段译文 这种好处并不是人人均等。原本成绩最低的学生收获最大，约为平均效果的两倍。一年级学生的进步也更多，可能是因为他们仍在养成学习习惯。然而，在理科和工程课程中，这项禁令几乎没有带来变化。因此，成绩较好和较差学生之间的差距缩小了。
The rule did not work by bringing more students to class , since attendance did not change . Instead , the change seemed to happen inside the classroom . Observers who visited without warning saw less chatting , fewer disruptions and less phone use . Even teachers , who did not have to give up their phones , used them less and paid more attention to the lesson .
本段译文 这项规定并不是靠让更多学生来上课而起作用的，因为出勤率没有变化。相反，变化似乎发生在教室里面。不打招呼前来听课的观察人员看到，闲聊、干扰行为和手机使用都减少了。就连不必交出手机的老师，也用得更少，对课堂投入了更多注意力。
Students ’ opinions changed too . “There has been extensive debate about mobile phones in the classroom , but the experimental evidence has been limited ,” said Andreas Bjerre-Nielsen of the University of Copenhagen , one of the authors . Students who had tried phone-free lessons became more supportive of the rules and more likely to see their benefits . The study found no clear change in their well-being or motivation . Still , the researchers note that it involved college students only , so more research is needed in primary and secondary schools .
本段译文 学生的看法也发生了变化。“关于课堂上的手机一直有大量争论，但实验证据很有限，”作者之一、哥本哈根大学的 Andreas Bjerre-Nielsen 说。体验过无手机课堂的学生更支持这些规定，也更可能看到其中的好处。研究没有发现他们的身心健康或学习动力有明显变化。不过，研究人员指出，这项研究只涉及大学生，因此还需要在中小学开展更多研究。
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