As schools issued with mobile phone guidance – many worry the law is not keeping up with modern life | Politics News

A statistic that may bewilder anyone older than around 35 – by age 12, 97% of pupils have a mobile phone.

Here’s another alarming figure.

At one secondary school, the head said he’d spoken to a pupil who had spent 18 hours on their phone in a single Sunday.

Given all that, it’s no surprise that formal guidance on using mobile phones within schools in England has been talked about by the government for years.

It’s now materialised and, in general, has been welcomed by headteachers as providing clarity and consistency – as well as an empowering effect to crack down on phone use.

But will the new document have much tangible impact?

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Many schools already have rules around phone use – ranging from blanket bans to confiscation policies.

While the government has said half of schools currently do not restrict use, a survey by Teacher Tapp last month suggested 62% of secondaries had blanket bans during the day and fewer than 1% allowed phone use at any time.

The City of London Academy in Southwark allows pupils to keep their phones on them but enforces a ‘see it, hear it, lose it’ rule where handsets are taken away if they are spotted or go off in lessons.

A phone is confined to the confiscation locker until the end of the following day for a first offence or the end of the next week if it happens a second time.

The head here says the stringency of the rules does have a deterrent affect as many pupils would often rather be suspended than separated from their phone for an extend period.

The year nine pupils we spoke to at the school agreed with the rules, saying it helped with their learning – although one did admit that certain teachers were more lenient than others.

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The new guidance has been hailed by ministers as ‘changing the norms’ in schools, but it comes amid an increased focus on the broader impact of the use of social media and mobile phones by young people.

The two teenagers convicted of murdering Brianna Ghey in Warrington last year were found to have accessed violent material online before the killing.

Brianna’s mother, Esther Ghey, has since called for more drastic rules including for phones to be made for under 16s that do not allow access to social media apps.

That idea has been backed by the Children’s Commissioner for England Dame Rachel de Souza.

The secondary school pupils we spoke to were not convinced though, questioning whether a broader ban would work and pointing out that some use smartphones for learning and homework if they don’t have a computer at home.

The government doesn’t seem to be onboard either, with ministers maintaining that the new online safety act will go some way to protecting children and young people.

From social media to artificial intelligence, it’s quite often the pace of change in the world of tech that presents acute challenges for legislators.

Many now are worried that the law simply isn’t keeping up with modern life.