Our middle school has an “away for the day” philosophy: phones in lockers all day, and strong punishment for failing to comply. While likely just correlated, my daughter dumps her dumb phone at the front table and forgets to charge it most days.
It seems we need to get to that day when administrators find the courage to completely ban (not limit) smart phones and personal computers in schools for students and for teachers/staff. The research is firm and conclusive that smart phones the CAUSE of and not a correlation for depression, alienation, loneliness, low self esteem, suicidal ideation and more among children and teens. Teachers and parents cannot be tasked with doing this on their own. It doesn’t work that way. It has to an all-in remedy that’s strictly enforced. This must start with administrators educating their school communities on the harmful effects of social media freely accessed by children and even adults and then implementing a plan that’s effective and easily implemented.
This is not an us-them problem (kids-adults). We are all in this together and we are all diminished by social media platforms and their algorithms that so easily and powerfully influence us.
I appreciate the “likes” to my comment. After 28 years of teaching secondary school and living through the onslaught of technology in education hailed as some salvific gift to academic progress, I witnessed only the diminishment of academic achievement and personal development of which a constitutive part is interpersonal growth, learning and relationship.
With screens in hands and on desks throughout the entire school day, how can anyone be possibly present and engaged? Then add in the social media amplified stressors of “likes”/“dislikes”; detestable comparisons, ubiquitous porn, inane posts and videos and you forfeited the learning environment to the tech profit seekers all at the expense of the children they exploit. It’s sad to admit that many of the adults responsible for protecting the educational environment simply are too compromised themselves to lead in healthier directions. They don’t want to be seen as left behind on any of the most recent and empty tech promises. And so a lot of time and resources are spent accommodating technology instead of focusing on proven educational techniques like direct and uninterrupted teacher-student interaction.
Completely ban smart phones in schools for all students and teacher/staff and limit computer access to designated computer labs where every computer can be programmed to exclude texting, gaming, and social media access. Then maybe we may actually witness human interaction and growth as well as the much sought after academic excellence.
Agreed that screens are bad for kids, but this isn't addressing the root causes of the issue. At least in the US, both parents have to work, leaving children fend for themselves. We have an addiction culture between drugs (marijuana) and gambling, both are sanctioned by the government in most states. Education is complusatory and some children don't belong in schools, especially in urban centers where facilities are mere prisons or day cares. Add that parents are addicted to their devices themselves, serving an example for their children who use phones and iPads at the dinner table and restaurants.
So government bans do nothing. The problem is the culture.
Our middle school has an “away for the day” philosophy: phones in lockers all day, and strong punishment for failing to comply. While likely just correlated, my daughter dumps her dumb phone at the front table and forgets to charge it most days.
It seems we need to get to that day when administrators find the courage to completely ban (not limit) smart phones and personal computers in schools for students and for teachers/staff. The research is firm and conclusive that smart phones the CAUSE of and not a correlation for depression, alienation, loneliness, low self esteem, suicidal ideation and more among children and teens. Teachers and parents cannot be tasked with doing this on their own. It doesn’t work that way. It has to an all-in remedy that’s strictly enforced. This must start with administrators educating their school communities on the harmful effects of social media freely accessed by children and even adults and then implementing a plan that’s effective and easily implemented.
This is not an us-them problem (kids-adults). We are all in this together and we are all diminished by social media platforms and their algorithms that so easily and powerfully influence us.
I appreciate the “likes” to my comment. After 28 years of teaching secondary school and living through the onslaught of technology in education hailed as some salvific gift to academic progress, I witnessed only the diminishment of academic achievement and personal development of which a constitutive part is interpersonal growth, learning and relationship.
With screens in hands and on desks throughout the entire school day, how can anyone be possibly present and engaged? Then add in the social media amplified stressors of “likes”/“dislikes”; detestable comparisons, ubiquitous porn, inane posts and videos and you forfeited the learning environment to the tech profit seekers all at the expense of the children they exploit. It’s sad to admit that many of the adults responsible for protecting the educational environment simply are too compromised themselves to lead in healthier directions. They don’t want to be seen as left behind on any of the most recent and empty tech promises. And so a lot of time and resources are spent accommodating technology instead of focusing on proven educational techniques like direct and uninterrupted teacher-student interaction.
Completely ban smart phones in schools for all students and teacher/staff and limit computer access to designated computer labs where every computer can be programmed to exclude texting, gaming, and social media access. Then maybe we may actually witness human interaction and growth as well as the much sought after academic excellence.
Let me also add this link: https://open.substack.com/pub/jonathanhaidt/p/tech-hypocrisy?r=2b780s&utm_medium=ios
It’s an article by Jonathan Haidt and others in The Atlantic and posted in the link for full access. It’s worth reading.
New Zealand implemented a “screens away for the day” policy in all schools in April 2024 and according to teachers I know it is a great success.
Agreed that screens are bad for kids, but this isn't addressing the root causes of the issue. At least in the US, both parents have to work, leaving children fend for themselves. We have an addiction culture between drugs (marijuana) and gambling, both are sanctioned by the government in most states. Education is complusatory and some children don't belong in schools, especially in urban centers where facilities are mere prisons or day cares. Add that parents are addicted to their devices themselves, serving an example for their children who use phones and iPads at the dinner table and restaurants.
So government bans do nothing. The problem is the culture.
This is so great! I saw a huge difference in my own kids when they stopped watching TV early on.
They call it a "ban" because nobody in the school division apparently can spell "limitation".