Today many countries are having a discussion about the use of mobile devices in school. The opinions on this issue swing like a pendulum — from an absolute permissiveness to a categorical ban. Children, parents, and teachers, as it happens, express exact opposite positions on this. Unfortunately, a universal solution that would suit all parties is not yet found.
If it comes down to checking students’ bags, then a lot of teachers must be involved. If pupils have to leave smartphones in individual lockers, then additional measures should be taken to prevent hacking and stealing. Even the adoption of wave interference and the use of specialized vans for storing devices near educational institutions are on the table.
Everyone agrees on one thing — gadgets are already in schools, and they are here to stay, for better or worse. If you have an assignment to write an essay on this topic or a similar one, try using this service: https://custom-essays-writings.com/.
So, what are the arguments for and against the use of smartphones in schools?
Supporters of the mobile ban hope for the following outcomes:
1. Better Educational Performance
According to the London School of Economics study, students’ test results increased by 6.4% in those schools where smartphones have been banned. The limit on using mobile phones only in the classroom does give objective results. Although more than half of the students violate this rule. Using technology for cheating isn’t going anywhere.
Even if the sound is muted, the phones vibrate when messages or notifications come. It does not allow students to concentrate. Fear of not responding to a friend in time or falling out of discussions on social networks prevents youngsters from focusing on their studying. Perfect pictures and posts of other people give children the impression that life passes by while they have to sit in the classroom.
2. More In-Person Communication
According to the French Minister of Education Jean-Michel Blanc, contemporary pupils no longer play during breaks — they look at screens. When children communicate exclusively with their phones, they lose the ability to interact with each other. This opinion is also supported by the Headmaster of the elite Shiplake College, where students are punished for using smartphones.
3. Improved Health
Because of devices, children do not move much, and this affects their health. Adding to that, according to studies, students who spend more than two hours a day on social networks are more likely to have mental problems.
Also, one of the health scares is anorexia and other eating disorders. Because of this, mobile phones are banned in one of the British private schools for girls in Stroud, due to apps that count calories and steps. Teachers noticed that girls from seven to eleven years old skipped lunches and went on diets if they did not fit the established standards. Meanwhile, older girls are allowed to use smartphones because they have already formed their eating habits.
4. Decline of Internet Addiction
Back in the 2000s, summer camps for digital detoxification were organized in the USA so that the children could spend some time without any screens. In many British educational institutions, only young students are not allowed to use smartphones because it is believed they have a higher risk of getting addicted to the Internet at that age. For example, at Brighton College, phones are temporarily exchanged for board games like Monopoly for pupils under the age of nine. Gadgets are allowed twice a week for school pupils older than ten, and four times a week for those who are older than eleven years old.
5. Reduction of Sexting and Cyberbullying
Sexting means sending messages with sexual content. Many experts state that it is quite a common phenomenon among adolescents. Therefore, proponents of the ban on phones hope to stop students from sexting at least during classes.
Perhaps, this ban can help overcome cyberbullying, that is, harassment and intimidation on the Internet. If no gadgets are allowed in the classroom, nobody will able to share humiliating pictures of classmates on social networks. Even teachers fear of being recorded.
In Bavaria, Germany, the law forbidding devices in schools has been in force since 2006. It was adopted after police exposed some students who were distributing pornographic and violent pictures using smartphones. The administration of Australian Queensland College took measures that bypassed the students’ privacy. With the written consent of the parents, teachers look for any suspicious content on students’ devices. If evidence of sexting or cyberbullying is found, such students are expelled.
Critics of the ban on cell phones put forward the following objections:
1. Disappearance of the Digital Umbilical Cord
Mass media usually calls an opportunity for parents to be in touch with their kids and locate them at any time by GPS, the digital umbilical cord. Parents are afraid that their son or daughter will get lost, face trouble, or be left alone without any support. The inability to hear the child’s voice during the day can make parents anxious.
Presently, the reverse of this process occurs. In 2015 New York authorities lifted the ban on phones in schools, which lasted ten years. In France, parents are protesting the law banning cell phones, which was adopted in 2018. Therefore, not everything is thought-through regarding safety in schools. Smartphones helped many children to avoid trouble near the school.
2. Separating Pupils from Reality
A group of teachers from Karlstadt (Germany) stated that schools could not forbid students from keeping in touch with real life. These educators announced they would not perform the requirement to ban mobile phones. In their opinion, it is worth teaching children the safe use of the Internet and devices, and not banning them.
According to the Minister of Education of Italy Valeria Fedeli, a child left alone with a smartphone is likely to be deceived by intruders or become a victim of cybercriminals. A qualified teacher can explain to pupils a lot and help them in various situations. In Italy, the ban on mobile phones in classrooms, which was enacted in 2007, is expected to be terminated.
3. Depriving Students of Modern Teaching Tools
Many professionals from the USA, Canada, and Scandinavian countries consider the phones ban similar to the refusal of thousands of computers. In these nations, digital devices are included in the educational process. Today, the practice of BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) is routine for students from many parts of Europe.
The St. Julian’s School in Newport, USA, has doesn’t use paper diaries. All data is stored in the cloud, and teachers use Twitter to instruct students. Lessons can be filmed with further viewing at home. In Portsmouth, United Kingdom, students began excelling at geography using smartphones. They create podcasts, animated projects, GPS, and mapping applications.
Geocaching became extremely popular. It is a game with satellite navigation systems for finding loot by the geographic coordinates. British teachers often send texts with funny riddles and stories to elementary school pupils to encourage them to read. In Ireland, where students commonly use English and often do not know their native language well, teachers use voice messages with Irish words in them.
4. Getting Around The Ban Is Easy
In the US, there were journalistic investigations to find out if the ban on smartphones in schools actually works. Students shared a lot of tricks for going around this ban.
For example, one can bring two phones. The first is left at the entrance for safekeeping, and another device is used secretly. Also, students manage to get around parental control by using Spanish words on any forbidden topics. Most of these apps do not have settings in other languages than English.
So, a lot of countries have one or two restrictions on the use of modern gadgets in schools. Probably, as with many other issues, we need to find the middle ground, a balance between what is allowed and what is not.
