Edinburgh's proposed ban on mobile phones in schools: Education convener James Dalgleish answers questions on what is planned
Two Edinburgh high schools last year became the first secondary schools in Scotland to pilot a zero-phone policy.
The ban, which has been running at Portobello and Queensferry high schools since May, is now set to be rolled out across the Capital.
A five-week consultation with parents/carers, pupils and staff ends on March 2 and education convener James Dalgleish expects a mobile phone ban to be in force in all city schools later this year.
But what will it mean and how will it work? Here, Cllr Dalgleish answers questions on the proposed ban.
What is the proposed ban trying to achieve?
“This is about pupils' welfare and setting pupils and teachers up for success - encouraging young people to stay in class and focused on learning without the distraction of checking their phone. It is about levelling the playing field for all learners at school, so that our classrooms are free from the distraction of mobile phone notifications, and that regardless of what is happening in a child or young persons life outside of school, the school environment is a place for learning and socialising. It is expected that in the long-term in line with research, that a decrease in phone use will improve mental health and wellbeing of learners and encourage a healthier approach to spending time online.”
Why is it so important to have restrictions?
“Parents and young people and teachers were talking to me about some of the difficulties they were having in school. We've heard from young people they are sometimes seeing a lot of graphic and unwelcome images in school through mobile phones; we know that mobile phones are linked to potential bullying; and they are also a distraction. So I think, again for pupil welfare, it's really important we continue with our plans for a ban in the classroom at the very least, but potentially a ban on phones throughout the day at school.”
What are the options?
“The most likely option for high school is the pouch system we have in Queensferry and Portobello. It has been working well there and we have costed for that, so it's in our council budget. And for primary schools, where we know mobile phones are less of an issue, we will potentially have lockable cupboards.”
How are the pilots going?
“The pilots in Portobello and Queensferry are going really well - they have been a real success. I've been out to visit both. Teachers are able to teach with one less distraction and I think pupils are less distracted as well. I was at Queensferry recently and I was able to watch pupils, a few hundred of them, on their lunchbreak, without their mobile phones, making new friends, getting on and being able to focus. Of course there will always be issues, always be challenges, but it's a success. It is too early to say if the bans have had a positive impact on attainment levels, but I would be surprised if we don’t see an uptick in attainment levels as a result of phone free classrooms.”
What is the timescale for rolling out the ban to all schools?
“We're hoping that education committee will agree a ban, subject to little bits of work we have to do and subject to the consultation, in June. Then we're hoping around that start of term in August we'll have a ban in place. But it's most definitely going to happen this year.”
What are the challenges you see?
“Because Edinburgh is one of Scotland's largest cities, it's going to be a real challenging change for the tens of thousands of pupils. There will be unforeseen challenges that come up. I think it's about getting the right balance, there will be pupils who need their mobile phones because of additional support needs who might be a little bit concerned. We need to make sure we get it right for the teachers, for the pupils as well and get that balance working properly in practice.”
What provision will there be for children with ASN or medical needs?
“It's really important to say that we recognise the word ban sounds very blanket, we will set out plans that will make it work individually in each school and for each pupil as well. A good example is that pupils who have additional support needs, who need their mobil phones, will have Velcro pouches. So their phones will still be away, but when they do need them they will be easily accessible.”
What happens when pupils find their way around the restrictions?
“I completely acknowledge not every pupil is going to be happy about a ban. For us it's about working with the teachers practically about how that works. One of the solutions that I know works at the moment is teachers just confiscate the phone from pupils during class time and it will get returned at the end of the day. So I think it’s probably simple solutions like that which will help.”
Will the ban apply in the same way in all schools?
“I'm completely open to variation. In the trials at Portobello and Queensferry, one has a blanket ban from the time pupils come into school until they leave and the other has a ban just within classrooms and pupils can access their phones during lunch. I'm very much open to suggestions. We'll see what the consultation says. It's not me saying to schools 'This is what needs to happen', it's about working with the schools, working with teachers, working with pupils to make sure they get the right solution for every school.”
Don't pupils use their phones to access educational material online?
“Yes they do. It's about taking that educational material and making sure our ipads work for pupils. Most pupils should have an individual ipad each. I know there have been some technical difficulties, but it's about making sure they have access to their ipads and get all their learning material from there. But I understand if that's not working then pupils will probably nee their mobile phones - on the rare occasion, I hope.”
Bullying via mobile phones can happen outside of school, so will a ban in school make any difference?
“I think it will make a difference. It's not a silver bullet. The issue of violence in schools ad bullying in schools goes far beyond social media. I can't control what happens outside of school, but for me it’s about what we can do to give people the highest welfare to give them the best opportunity within school and I think this ban is part of that.”
Is there cross-party support for the ban?
“Generally yes. There are questions about specific parts of the plan and we will debate and issues them, but education committee has already agreed on the broad brush that there should be a ban, subject to the consultation.”