Mobile Phones have been banned by the United Kingdom Prime Minister Rishi Sunak across all schools in England. UK PM made the announcement on the X platform with a video message. The UK PM said, “Almost one-third of secondary school people said that their lessons were disrupted by phone”.
‘Schools that have already banned mobile phones on their campuses have led to a ‘better learning’ environment’, said Sunak.
We know how distracting mobile phones are in the classroom.
Today we help schools put an end to this. pic.twitter.com/ulV23CIbNe
— Rishi Sunak (@RishiSunak) February 19, 2024
Headteachers will be monitoring the use of mobile phones throughout the school day including at break times under government guidance in England. The British government said the new guidance will ensure there is a positive approach across all schools.
Examples of different approaches will comprise banning phones from the school premises, handing in phones on arrival at school, and keeping phones securely locked away at school. ‘By the age of twelve, 97 % of children have their mobile phones’, according to data from the UK media watchdog Office of Communications (OFCOM).
‘Using mobile phones in schools can turn to online bullying, distraction, and classroom disruption which could lead to lost learning time’, the Department for Education (DfE) noted.
The government guidance gives response to concerns from parents about mobile phones, with the latest data from charity ParentKind’s National Parent Survey revealing that 44 % of parents are worried about the amount of time their children spend on electronic devices, rising to 50 % of parents of secondary schoolchildren.
According to DfE, ‘schools have seen progress in prohibiting mobile phones through techniques such as introducing lockers with charging points for students to ensure they don’t come into classrooms’.
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