Mobile phones to be BANNED from classrooms to help pupils focus, Education Secretary Gillian Keegan announces
MOBILE phones will be BANNED in classrooms to help pupils focus.
Gillian Keegan, the Education Secretary, believes the outlawing will also help to end disruption and cut cyber-bullying.
Announcing the plans, she wrote on X: “We know that mobile phones are a source of distraction and bullying in the classroom.
“Yet, 40% of 14-year-olds report that their lessons were disrupted by phones.
“So today, we’re banning phones in schools.
“The Conservatives are taking long-term decisions for a brighter future.”
The new guidance will be issued “shortly” but a specific date has not been announced.
Decisions are currently made by head teachers and it is currently unclear how this will change with the move.
Most schools set their own rules around mobile phones, with many already asking that devices are handed in each morning.
Other schools let pupils have mobile phones at breaks and lunchtimes.
In 2018, the Government estimated that 95 percent of schools in Britain have imposed some form of restriction on the devices.
A UN report has recommended a ban to boost learning and cut cyberbullying.
But education figures in England have suggested a blanket ban was “unenforceable”.
NASUWT general secretary Dr Patrick Roach said such a move could also make “the behaviour crisis worse, not better” in schools.
Ms Keegan previously said of the scourge: “Today one of the biggest issues facing our children and teachers is grappling with the impact of smartphones in our schools.
“The distraction, the disruption, the bullying.
“We know that teachers are struggling with their impact and need our support.
“We’re recognising the amazing work that many schools have done in banning mobile phones.
“And we will change guidance so all schools will follow their lead. The focus should be on children learning in the classroom.”