There has already been much debate about children accessing their mobiles whilst at school. Is it the time to give careful consideration to whether children should be allowed to have their mobiles in schools at all?
The importance of keeping students off phones
Initially, parents provided their children with mobiles purely for safety reasons. However, smartphones are so much more than mere communication devices now, and are effectively pocket computers.
Most phones have internet access, allowing students easy access to cheat or share answers. But most worrying of all, is the need to constantly check social media. Sadly, this is often to blame for bullying nowadays, massively impacting student mental health. All of which detracts from paying attention in class.
This school banned mobiles over ten years ago and are reaping the rewards with students being much more sociable and involved.
Limit the use of phones in class
It can be really hard to prevent tech-savvy teens from accessing their data. Many schools are starting to implement ‘no phone’ policies and there are growing calls to ban smartphones by law (see this BBC article).
The government has also issued guidelines to help schools.
Consider a mobile phone agreement
Parents and students are more likely to adhere to new guidelines if they understand the school’s reasons for implementation.
It’s worth noting, students are more likely to adhere to a policy they have had some input in making. So, maybe hold class discussions about this – they may surprise you.
You will need to decide whether you:-
- store mobiles away during the school day; or
- if you allow students to keep them, but turned off; or
- not have them on the school premises at all.
Looking ahead, it will be increasingly difficult to manage as new technology becomes more widespread. Is it feasible to ban smart watches in schools?
Having a policy that limits mobile use can minimise distractions and help to improve student focus. Getting students and parents to sign your agreement will add extra accountability to the policy.
Prepare for resistance
Students (and sadly some adults) do not fully appreciate that apps are specifically designed to be as “addictive” as possible.
Nor do they recognise the negative impacts associated – such as isolation, anxiety, depression and in some extreme cases, self-harm or suicide. (Kings College of London research.)
So, it falls to the teachers to provide an open forum to discuss these matters.
Keep students engaged
Unengaged students are much more likely to reach for their phones. To minimise this, teachers need to plan appealing activities that could incorporate experiments, cooperative learning, and/or other creative activities.
Encouraging students to interact with one another helps them to build social and communication skills. This hopefully, stands them in good stead for adult life and their need to constantly check their phone is forgotten.
Phones aren’t all bad!
It’s not all doom and gloom! So long as the use is under the direction/supervision of a teacher and linked to the curriculum. Teachers may allow their use for certain activities, such as researching a topic, the various homework and school apps, etc.
Consequently, you do need to be mindful not to ostracise any students who do not possess smart phones. This issue was reported in a recent BBC news article.
Conclusion
There’s no doubt, managing mobiles in schools are a total minefield! There have been, and will be further discussions on this topic, from Parliamentary debates down to school management level. This was also a recent Channel 4 TV show that covered this, where Year 8 students were challenged to give up their phones for 21 days.
There is no easy answer, but with such high levels of anxiety among children, it is a growing problem and not one to be ignored.
