Hold the phone

A Guernsey school is pioneering the use of a parental-control app to help pupils ‘develop a healthy relationship with the internet and social media’. Staff at the 455-year-old Elizabeth College, an independent boys’ school in St Peter Port, found parents were increasingly worried about the pervasiveness of technology in children’s lives. An app called Familytime, which restricts how much time can be spent on a device and what can be done with it, proved to be a possible solution after a trial. It is now mandatory for Year 7 pupils to have Familytime on their phones, installed and managed by parents, with access to non-educational resources blocked from 8.25am to 4pm.

‘We don’t have an issue with boys doing what they should be doing in class, but we do have an issue with [them] using their devices during break times,’ explains Dave Costen, Elizabeth College’s director of digital learning. ‘They’re spending time on their screens and, although they’re talking to each other, they’re not looking at each other. It’s that aspect of students’ welfare that we’re interested in. We’re also looking to teach them a little bit of self-moderation.’

If the initiative proves successful, it will be rolled out to the incoming Year 7 and 9 classes next September. Mr Costen reports that feedback from parents thus far has been ‘universally positive’. Carla Passino