Rethink phone use on school property
RECENTLYI was invited to speak at a London comprehensive school in a mixed catchment area.
The head teacher worried that most of her pupils were unaware of the challenges facing them in a fastchanging, competitive world and she wanted me to talk about my life – how I grew up without much money, how education took me out of hopelessness, to a better future.
But, within minutes, the kids were looking at their phones and texting away. Two phones went off – the ringtones were pop songs – and were answered. They all laughed. The teachers were mortified. What a waste of my time and theirs.
More than 90% of teens have mobile phones. Younger kids have them, too. They cannot live without this gadget. They must have it, winking, sounding day and night. This is a massive cultural transformation.
I don’t want to sound like a Luddite … Cellphones have improved life immeasurably. But their effect on education has not been positive.
All schools – private and state – are grappling with phone disruption and distraction in classrooms.
Now the British government has commissioned Tom Bennett, the Department of Education discipline tsar, to look into the impact of modern, must-have devices on behaviour and grades.
Christine Blower, the general secretary of the National Union of Teachers, opposes this inquiry:
There is ample evidence now that academic results improve if phones are banned from schools
“Smartphones can be part of successful teaching and learning strategies.” Brian Lightman, the general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, adds his own objections.
What bizarre responses. All schools have computers. Why does any pupil need to use a personal phone to learn, think, analyse or debate? Exhausted and irate teachers at the school mentioned earlier told me they were considering leaving the job they loved because it was becoming impossible.
The chemistry teacher said: “These pupils are here in body but not mind. They go, via their phones, elsewhere … If we don’t do something, we fail this generation. It is almost a mental illness.” And here are their representatives scuppering moves to reclaim pupil attention and education.
There is ample evidence now that academic results improve when phones are banned from schools. A research study by Louis-Philippe Beland and Richard Murphy at the London School of Economics proved that a phoneless classroom improved performance, most of all for those from low-income families.
Then there are possible health risks. Although scientists have found no clear link between brain tumours and early phone use, researchers in Sweden concluded there was a higher risk of children developing some kinds of cancer cells.
Behavioural changes are also causing concern. The extraordinarily observant fly-on-the-wall Channel 4 series filmed at schools shows clearly how order, attention and discipline are undermined by mobile-obsessed pupils.
Beleaguered teachers try to keep control of wayward, often horribly rude pupils, whose eyes and ears are stuck to mobile phones.
Phone cyberbullying is endangering the well-being of youngsters.
A school psychologist tells me that children access porn on their phones during lessons and breaks. Looking at those images can be distorting. This could be why so many young males do not understand what consent means. Schools have an absolute duty to protect these young minds.