Responding to a report from the Education Select Committee on the
impact of increased screen time on education and wellbeing, Pepe
Di'Iasio, General Secretary of the Association of School and
College Leaders, said:
“This report has confused an issue that is actually very simple.
As research from the DfE shows, the vast majority of schools
either already ban the use of phones or only permit usage at
certain times.
“On one hand, the report welcomes the flexibility of the new
non-statutory guidance in allowing schools to implement it in the
way that best works for them, but on the other is calling for
formal monitoring of this process and a move to a statutory ban
if deemed necessary. The Committee also rightly points out that
parents should not be prevented from being able to contact their
children during their commute to school. Rather than offering
flexibility, a statutory ban would seemingly leave schools with
only one option – to confiscate all phones at the start of the
day and return them at the end. While this may work for some
schools, others just will not have the time and resources to
manage such a process.
“We hope the confusion around phones in schools does not
undermine the very valid concerns this report raises about
increased screen time, cyberbullying, social media and the impact
this is having on children's mental health. While schools do
their best to teach about these dangers, the simple truth is that
almost all of the time young people spend online is outside the
school gates and it is large technology companies that wield the
greatest influence. We urge the government to do all they can to
properly regulate social media and protect children from the
damaging material they too often see on these platforms.”
