The Case for Locking Up Your Smartphone

Minimalist · Feb 3, 2018

If abstinence from alcohol originated in Protestant England, maybe abstinence from digital devices will come from Catholic France. The country has recently rolled out a new labor law called the “right to disconnect,” and following a campaign promise made by President Emmanuel Macron, the French Ministry of Education plans to ban the use of smartphones in all of its public schools.*Philippe Vincent, a member of the French head teachers’ union, has estimated that it would take about 3 million lockers to keep cellphones out of the hands of wired écoliers.
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http://www.nextgov.com/emerging-tech/2018/02/case-locking-your-smartphone/145704/

mirimir · Feb 3, 2018

That might cut down on the social-media insanity. But aren't there also beneficial uses? Such as access to knowledge during discussion?

RockLobster · Feb 3, 2018

school kids with smartphones == facebook and texting each other.

Krusty · Feb 3, 2018

Calls for smartphone ban in school classrooms

KIDS are using phones at school to photograph classmates in change rooms, watch pornography and send suicide taunts.

Federal Education Minister Simon Birmingham yesterday called on schools to ban smartphone use.

“There’s almost no reason students shouldn’t have their phones switched off and in their lockers while they’re at school,’’ he told The Sunday Telegraph.

“Although learning to work with technology is essential, phones can be a distraction from lessons and a platform for bullying unless schools have the right policies in place.’’
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mood · Feb 2, 2019

Mobile phones ‘should be banned from schools’, minister says
February 1, 2019
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/...ly-davies-chief-medical-officer-a8759406.html

Nick Gibb said he had concerns about the impact excessive phone use was having on children, and said the government would introduce lessons for pupils on how to limit their screen time.
“Schools obviously are free to set their own behaviour policies but my own view is that schools should ban mobile telephones and smartphones inside school, and particularly inside classrooms,” he told The Times.

However, Rutgers University in the United States last year concluded students scored the equivalent of half a grade less in end-of-term tests if they were allowed to use their devices for non-academic reasons in their classes.

The UK would be following in the footsteps of European counterparts if schools were to introduce a mobile phone ban, with French pupils being told to leave their smartphones at home when they returned from their summer holidays last year.
Teachers in the UK have also complained about pupils being distracted or using the phones to take upskirt images of staff in the classroom.
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“If children want to use a phone in an emergency they can use the school phone.”
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mood · Feb 3, 2019

Cell-phone ban workaround:
Rich kids are cheating in school with Apple Watches
January 31, 2019
https://theoutline.com/post/7030/rich-kids-are-cheating-in-school-with-apple-watches

The watch is a convenient workaround for classroom cell-phone bans; it can be used for everything from texting to cheating on tests.
“I knew they were using them during class because I saw them swiping on their watches. It’s not so easy to hide — the kids were looking straight down at their wrists, and it wasn’t as if they were checking the time,” she said. “It drove me crazy.”

“If I remember correctly, it didn’t affect enough students to be worth making a policy over,” she said, though “it definitely would have been easier, as a teacher, if they fell into the same category as phones and could be taken away.”

Generally speaking, school policies on tech in the classroom vary widely by district, by classroom, and even by teacher [...] others have a more relaxed policy, allowing students to keep their phones as long as they are not in sight during class.
In the U.S., Apple Watches still aren’t trendy enough to be viewed as a legitimate nuisance in schools: “I’ve seen some among teenagers, but they haven’t really caught on,” said Jim Taylor, author of the book Raising Generation Tech.
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mood · Feb 10, 2019

South Wigston school charges for confiscated mobile phone return
February 9, 2019
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-leicestershire-47179753

South Wigston High School's policy says phones "will be confiscated and returned to parents only. A £2 contribution to the school's charity will be required for return".

The Leicestershire secondary school - which has banned pupils having mobiles - said the payment was "voluntary".
The school says mobile phones are banned because they are "known to be a major tool for bullying" and "a distraction to learning".

Another mother called the policy "brilliant" and said her son was at school to learn not to play on his mobile.
A Department for Education spokesman said the Secretary of State supported schools banning phones, and if they were banned it should be set out in their behaviour policies.
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mood · Jul 28, 2019

New cell phone rule at Huntsville City Schools has some parents concerned
July 26, 2019
https://www.waaytv.com/content/news...ols-has-some-parents-concerned-513268791.html

Parents are reacting to a strict new rule about cell phones at Huntsville City Schools.
Kids can have them, but they can't have them turned on.

"I buy my child a cell phone for a reason, so that I can get a hold of them any time I want to get a hold of them, and so that I know they are safe [...]" Charles Osbourn said.
He is worried the new cell phone rule at Huntsville City Schools will keep parents from being able to reach their kids in an emergency.
Osbourn says he understands the goal of eliminating distractions, but thinks in today's modern age, the rule can be dangerous.

WAAY 31 asked the district spokesman, Keith Ward, how schools will enforce the rule. Ward said after a student has been warned, teachers can confiscate phones until the end of the day. However, a parent, not the student, will have to pick it up at the administrative office.
At this time, no exceptions are written into the policy.
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mood · Aug 21, 2019

A California high school found students' cellphones too distracting, so they're locking the devices up
August 21, 2019
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/educat...s-cellphones-too-distracting-so-they-n1044636

It wasn’t enough to just tell students at San Mateo High School to put their phones away during class, now, officials at the California school have told them to lock them away.
And while their familiar companions may still be near, the high-schoolers are now required to keep their devices in a magnetically sealed pouch during school hours.

"We could walk into a variety of classrooms, and kids would be on their cellphones anywhere from 5 seconds, checking a text, to 30 to 45 minutes at a time," Adam Gelb, assistant principal of San Mateo High School, told NBC Bay Area. "You're here to learn. You are here to work with your teachers and students, and we started getting away from that because of these devices and how addictive they can be."
Each school day, nearly 1,700 students place their devices in a Yondr pouch that closes with a proprietary lock. School administrators unlock them at the end of the day.

“Taking cellphones out of the classroom is a no-brainer,” said Calvin Newport, a professor of computer science at Georgetown University.
Students tend to perform worse when they have access to network connectivity in the classroom, he said.
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xxJackxx · Aug 22, 2019

I can't believe that kids have smart phones due to the expense (I got a $1 a week allowance as a child) and that they were ever allowed in schools. When I went to school if you were caught with a calculator on your person in math class you were flunked, expelled from the class, and forced to retake it later.

mood · Aug 25, 2019

Victorian government commits AU$12m to help schools prepare for mobile ban
Schools can now apply for funding to purchase or upgrade new lockers, or lockable pouches to prepare for the state-wide mobile phone ban
August 26, 2019
https://www.zdnet.com/article/victo...au12m-to-help-schools-prepare-for-mobile-ban/

Ahead of the state-wide mobile phone ban at all schools in Victoria next year, the state government has set aside AU$12 million to help schools deliver storage solutions to securely store student mobile phones.

"We are making sure each school has the secure storage facilities that suit their needs ahead of the mobile phone ban starting in Term 1 next year," Minister for Education James Merlino said.
From Term 1 2020, all students at Victorian primary and secondary schools will be required to turn off their mobile phones and store it during the school day.
The Victorian government has labelled the decision as one that will help reduce distraction in the classroom and tackle cyber bullying.

The state-wide ban was praised by federal Minister for Education Dan Tehan, who said it would be "wonderful" if other states and territories followed Victoria's lead.
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mood · Sep 10, 2019

mood said: ↑

Cell-phone ban workaround:
Rich kids are cheating in school with Apple Watches
January 31, 2019
https://theoutline.com/post/7030/rich-kids-are-cheating-in-school-with-apple-watches
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The UK may ban all watches during exams to prevent cheating
It’s too hard to tell between watches and smartwatches, an independent commission says
September 10, 2019
https://www.engadget.com/2019/09/10/uk-considers-smartwatch-exam-ban/

The UK will consider banning all watches from school exams in an attempt to prevent cheating. An independent commission hired to investigate exam malpractice says it's too difficult to distinguish between regular and smartwatches, and it's impractical to ask proctors (or invigilators) to check every student's watch.
A sweeping ban, the commission says, would be more appropriate.

The Independent Commission on Examination Malpractice reports a "very low level of malpractice." But it says, "a total ban on all types of watches, as well as other internet devices, removes any possibility of candidates having non-sanctioned internet access during exams."
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chrisretusn · Sep 16, 2019

You couldn't do any of the above things with a slide rule. Amazingly enough I still have mine.

mood · Nov 28, 2019

Mobile phone ban introduced to public schools in Tasmania
November 27, 2019
https://www.zdnet.com/article/mobile-phone-ban-introduced-to-public-schools-in-tasmania/

The Tasmanian government has announced it will ban mobile phones during school hours at all public schools in the state, claiming the move will create a better learning environment for students.

From term two next year, students from primary school to year 12 will be required to have their phones switched off and put away from the time they arrive to school until the end of the school day.
A review will be undertaken after 12 months of the ban being implemented, the state government said.

"While electronic devices have a place in learning, we also need to acknowledge the issues that can occur when their use is not regulated such as cyberbullying and serious distraction," said Minister for Education and Training Jeremy Rockliff.
"Banning mobile phones gives students the opportunity to concentrate, think, learn, play and engage."

The ban by the Tasmanian government follows similar actions that have been taken by the Victorian and Western Australian governments.
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Rockliff added that exemptions will be made for "special circumstances", such as where a student needs to monitor a health condition or is under direct instruction of a teacher to use it for educational purposes.
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