SENDING A MESSAGE... FRENCH BAN PHONES FOR UNDER 15s
FRENCH MPs have given their emphatic seal of approval for plans for a ban on smartphones in schools for children up to the age of 15 in a move that is likely to increase pressure on the Government here to follow suit.
An early reading of the bill – first proposed in Emmanuel Macron’s presidential election manifesto last year – was backed by 312 MPs from the president’s ruling En Marche! party, along with 47 Democratic Movement MPs – guaranteeing an absolute majority in the National Assembly.
The government hopes the bill will now enjoy a speedy passage through parliament, in time to impose the blanket ban before the next academic year starts in September.
Education minister Jean-Michel Blanquer described the bill as a ‘detox measure’ to combat classroom distraction and bullying.
More than 90% of children aged 12 years or older have a mobile phone in France, according to the bill. ‘Mobile phones are a technological advance but they cannot monopolise our lives,’ said Mr Blanquer.
Indicating that neighbouring countries would follow suit, the minister said the proposal was ‘a law for the 21st century, a law for addressing the digital revolution’.
He said: ‘It’s a signal to French society of the stakes for our society. Being open to technologies of the future doesn’t mean we have to accept all their uses.’
He added later: ‘I think that teachers are very happy with this provision; they are the ones who live in the forefront of the problems that the mobile phone poses on a daily basis, at school or college, and having a very clear legal rule [will] now obviously be something beneficial for them.’
Aides to Mr Blanquer have acknowledged that enforcement could bring some difficulties, but insisted it was possible.
One aide said: ‘Children will be encouraged to discard their phones during crucial parts of the day, and this will undoubtedly improve the situation massively. The idea is that the children work with their teachers.’
All children aged six to 15 will be affected by the ban, while those aged 17 and 18 years, in the French equivalent of Leaving Cert cycle, will be able to carry on using their phones.
Mr Blanquer himself said at the time of introducing the legislation last year: ‘Sometimes you need a mobile for teaching reasons, and for urgent situations, but their use has to be controlled.’ He said the ban was a ‘public health message’.
Supporters of the bill say smartphone usage among children of junior and middle-school age has worsened cyber-bullying, eased access to pornography and hampered the ability of youngsters to interact socially.
Phone theft, racketeering and obsession with fashion brands were other negatives justifying an attempt to strike a balance in children’s lives, the minister said.
Richard Ferrand, head of En Marche! in parliament, said the law would be accompanied by efforts to explain the importance of limiting phone use to students. ‘When, in the playground, you see young people next to each other all staring at their phones, the result is the breaking of the link of camaraderie and sharing that pupils should share,’ he said.
Already, roughly half of the country’s 51,000 elementary schools and 7,000 junior high schools outlaw smartphone use during school time.
Philippe Vincent, of the SNPDEN union of school directors, said many schools in France had already introduced a ban, adding: ‘We’re not talking about a huge sudden change, but we backed the legislative route because it reinforces the process.’
Some members of En Marche! tabled a surprise amendment in the National Assembly yesterday saying the measure should be extended to the ‘entire educational community’, including teachers.
They argued that this is because many French schoolteachers now bring their devices into class, and are often seen using them during classtime, thereby setting a bad example to their pupils.
Asked about the amendment, Mr Blanquer said: ‘No, I’m not in favour. I think that the rules that apply to adults are not the same as those that apply to children and adolescents. Teachers are sufficiently aware not to use the mobile phone too much.’
Fellow En Marche! member Cathy Racon-Bouzon argued that banning teachers as well as children from using phones in school might be dangerous as they ‘would be unable to respond to emergencies’.
French Socialist MP Hervé Saulignac used the debate to point out that ‘many MPs’ were sitting around him using their phones instead of concentrating on what was being said.
Following yesterday’s debate, it’s expected that the basic ban on schoolchildren using smartphones in school is expected to be made law, but the teacher amendment may fail.
This does not mean the bill will not be amended as it continues to pass through parliament, however.
Despite the impressive voting figures, yesterday’s debate revealed a significant degree of opposition from MPs who say the bill will be impossible to enforce.
Michele Victory, of the Socialists, said it was a ‘purely cosmetic change’ that would be ‘useless’, as many would just carry on using their phones away from teachers.
‘Breaking link of camaraderie’ Significant degree of opposition