No more Snapchat or TikTok in class: the phone goes out of the classroom
No more using TikTok during class, sharing a photo via Snapchat or sending a message to a friend. Our telephone is an indispensable part of our lives, but soon it will be in the classroom. After extensive research by the Ministry of Education, there will now be a ban on smartphones in class. Schools have until October 1 to find out how they want to arrange this.
It is therefore up to the schools themselves to agree on the exact rules with teachers, parents and pupils, so that everyone in the school knows exactly what is and what is not allowed. Schools can also choose to ban mobile phones from school altogether. If the schools fail to comply with this, national rules may be introduced.
Minister Dijkgraaf of Education says: “Even though mobile phones are almost intertwined with our lives, they do not belong in the classroom. Students should be able to concentrate there and be given every opportunity to learn.”
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No more phones, tablets or smartwatches
That also applies to tablets and smartwatches. Mobile phones are a distraction and cause students to perform less well. Smartphones may still be used if they are needed for class or if there is a medical necessity. For example, a student with diabetes who has to measure the sugar values.
Harmful consequences
Schools and teachers have long been asking for rules on the use of telephones in the classroom. But teachers were unable to single-handedly ban smartphones from the classroom. Experts warned in several studies about the harmful effects of smartphones in the classroom. Because as it turns out, students who spend a lot of time on their phone score an average of 1 to 1.5 points lower on tests.
The organizations involved will further elaborate the agreement in the near future. After the summer holidays, teachers, students and their parents can also discuss with each other exactly what this will look like at their school, so that they have arranged this by 1 January 2024.
