Great debate: Should mobile phones be banned in schools?

Should children be allowed use of their mobile phones during school hours or should they be banned? Here are two side to the debate...

Hopefully other schools will show equal degrees of courage and sense, and follow Blennerville NSin rolling out a smartphone ban, writes Susan O’Shea.

Children actually talking, face-to-face, with their families, kicking a ball outside, engaging in ‘old-school’ activities — whatever could have prompted such a seismic shift in behaviour?

Why, a smartphone ban, silly.

Hats off to Blennerville NS, outside Tralee, the first school in the country to impose a ban on smartphone use outside of school (and for any wise-ass kid who tried to maintain their Fortnite addiction on their tablet, the ban covers that device too).

Now, hopefully, other schools will show equal degrees of courage and common sense, and follow suit.

Blennerville principal Terry O’Sullivan is to be commended, but so too are all the parents because, as he explains, the ban would not be possible without their support.

Inappropriate instant messaging between sixth-class pupils first prompted an 11-week pilot ban, and while there was an ‘adjustment’ period (for this I’m sure you can read tears, tantrums, and downright withdrawal), it was so successful, the ban has now been extended to the whole school.

The principal told local radio that class tensions were reduced, there was greater engagement and social interaction, and more kids taking exercise — in other words, the things us parents did as kids, running around, chatting using actual words rather than our fingers, and playing games, real ones, not where you sit mutely for hours on end, and come away glassy-eyed.

I’m not stupid enough to think no phone equals no bullying, but it takes away a big tool from the bully. And the ban also takes the pressure off parents whose kids don’t own smartphones.

Now, when pestered they can say, Johnny, or Jill or Jack doesn’t have one either.

Most parents have no difficulty saying no to their kids if they want to drink three cans of Coke on the trot, dip into the drinks cabinet, or play with dangerous weapons, but seem unable to deny their darlings when they come looking for a phone.

Rwanda has banned children from using mobile phones in school. Sounds pretty sensible, no?

— Stephanie Hegarty BBC News (@stephhegarty) June 27, 2018

And if you think I am being disingenuous, and not comparing like for like, yes, a phone, or tablet, or any device connected to the web, in the hands of child is a dangerous thing, no matter how savvy you think they are, what ‘talk’ you’ve had with them, or what parental controls you’ve in place.

We had an expert in this area talk to parents in our school recently and the stories would make your hair stand on end.

We are all too familiar with the tragic stories of those teens bullied so badly they have taken their own lives, but how about the disgruntled 12-year-old girl who took a phone from a boy in her class without his knowledge (they all know each other’s passwords, by the way) used it to send disgusting, derogatory comments to her own phone, screen-shot them, and them complained about him to the principal, almost destroying his life in the process until she was found out.

Or the two brothers, 8 and 11, found naked in their bedroom having being groomed by a 54-year-old they met innocently gaming on their Xbox. Or the 11-year-old so excluded and bullied on social media that she had to be homeschooled.

Or the nine-year-olds overheard in a schoolyard playing Grand Theft Auto tag, where the boys were ‘pimps’ and the girls ‘whores’. I could go on but, as the expert cautioned that night, the best parental control is no phone.

If you desperately need to be able to contact your child, buy them a basic Nokia.

And no, you are not depriving them of any vital digital skills that will damage their education or career prospects. They will pick it up as soon as they turn a teen; being able to tap and swipe is not the same as having a digital skillset.

If you fear that your kids will hate you, no they won’t (at least not forever). I have two who would love a phone or a tablet, and have begged for one. They got a trampoline for Christmas instead.

When they whine they’re bored, I tell them go bounce on that, or read a book (which thankfully they do), or be bored.

I admit, there are times I would love to hand them a phone just to get some peace and quiet, but childhood is short, and getting shorter, so well done Blennerville, other schools please follow suit, and let’s keep kids off screens for a long as we can.

Teacher Stephen Corbett argues that the solution is education not prohibition, and that phones can be a valuable resource with the help of innovative teachers

Access to mobile technology can be both a blessing and a curse. Smart phones are used to make calls, run businesses and organise social lives. But they also raise concerns over their potential impact on our health, society – and education, writes Stephen Corbett

Mobile text books. Shutterstock

The UK’s culture secretary has suggested it would be a good idea for schools to ban mobile phones. Matt Hancock, who is in charge of digital policy, said: “I admire headteachers who do not allow mobiles to be used during the school day. I encourage more schools to follow their lead. The evidence is that banning phones in schools works.”

He went on:

Studies have shown mobile phones can have a real impact on working memory and fluid intelligence, even if the phone is on a table or in a bag.

As a teacher, I personally witnessed the impact that rapidly evolving mobile phones had in the classroom. A new behavioural issue fast became a key challenge – how to deal with yet another distraction.

However, those same phones also became a valuable resource for many innovative teachers. Here was an opportunity to develop innovative learning strategies using technology which provided students with access to a knowledge base far beyond the confines of the classroom.

Some teachers use interactive learning activities such as the game-based platform Kahoot!, which is free but is reliant on students being able to access mobile devices. Others may simply wish their students to use those devices for research when they do not have access to computing facilities. In these cases, it is reasonable for teachers to encourage their students to use their mobile phones.

But this innovative approach comes with complications. How can teachers be sure that students are using their phones for learning rather than accessing social media? Students themselves are then expected to justify the use of their mobile phone.

Teachers can find themselves under immense pressure. Technology has developed at a speed which is difficult to keep up with – and with each advancement comes an expectation for teachers to have either a solution or strategy. This, coupled with the pressure on teachers to keep order in class and achieve good grades can leave little time for new strategies to emerge.

In some respects the culture secretary’s suggestion to ban mobile phones in schools (as France has done) is understandable. The rationale, I suspect, is that by removing the catalyst for poor behaviour (the mobile phone) we remove the issue.

But this repsonse has flaws. To start with, we already expect a great deal from our teachers. Do we now believe they should undertake “stop-and-search” surveillance of students entering the school and classroom simply to remove a mobile phone?

Secondly, while the removal of the mobile phone may prevent the short-term issue, it does not prepare our next generation. Education providers are responsible for preparing students for the future. Acquisition of knowledge is not enough – we must ensure young people are ready for the next stage of their lives.

A smarter approach

Whether we embrace it or not, mobile technology is a fundamental part of the modern world. Today’s students will have jobs that rely on technology, and they need to be mature enough to use it wisely – and appropriately.

The solution is not prohibition, but education. This is not without its challenges – but if we are shaping the workforce of tomorrow then we have to consider how we prepare students to be part of it. Exam results are important, but so too are wider skills such as using technology appropriately and safely, and having the self-discipline to regulate the use of mobile technology – knowing the right time and place to fire up a smart phone.

‘Your encyclopedia is confiscated.’ Shutterstock

As a student, I would want to be afforded the opportunity to retain my mobile phone – and be trusted to use it correctly. In return, I would expect to learn about appropriate mobile phone use with the guidance and support of my teachers.

As a parent, I would welcome another person taking the time to educate my child about the best way to of mobile phones. (That way I’m not the only person nagging: “You’re always on your phone…”)

And as a teacher, I appreciate the challenge that mobile phones bring to the classroom. But I also want to prepare my students for their next steps. The smart phone is not going anywhere – and has many educational features. It contains a writing tool, a calculator, and a huge encyclopedia – and I can’t imagine anyone calling for those to be banned at the school gates.

This article was written by Stephen Corbett of University of Portsmouth and was originally published on The Conversation Read the original article here.