Powered down and dialled in to learning School division’s successful cellphone ban has potential to go viral By: Nicole Buffie Posted: 6:58 PM CDT Thursday, May. 30, 2024 Last Modified: 10:27 PM CDT Thursday, May. 30, 2024 Updates

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A school division’s decision to turn off students’ phones while they’re in class is getting a top grade from teachers and parents.

“Parents are happy… teachers are telling us that they have more time to just teach,” said Alain Laberge, superintendent of the Division scolaire franco-manitobaine, which banned cellphone use at the start of the 2023-24 academic year.

The decision was made based on mounting concerns about phone use and student engagement. Elementary students are not allowed to take personal devices to school, while pupils in grades 9 to 12 are asked to surrender their phones at the beginning of class and are only supposed to use them during lunchtime.

Laberge said staff policed student use during the first weeks of the restriction, but students quickly understood the benefit to their ability to learn, Laberge said.

“Students feel like they want to pay attention to things which will get them school credit rather than a few important messages,” he said, adding student socializing should be done during lunch breaks, not learning periods.

Laberge believes school policies related to technology should be reviewed every few years to stay up to date — something the Winnipeg School Division is currently undertaking.

Its board of trustees is re-examining its technology policy, which was drawn up in 1997 and last updated in 2018.

“We have a policy that was created well before smartphones were ubiquitous and the administrative team here feel that it’s a good time to review that given some of the research that’s come out,” said superintendent Matt Henderson.

Henderson is concerned about the effect of mobile devices on a child’s development and the “incredibly addictive” design of social media apps.

“We’ve become so addicted to these devices that our human relationships are suffering.

“So as places that are here to nurture and foster positive relationships and deep learning, we feel that there’s a considerable responsibility to teach children not only how to use these devices, but also when not to.”

A 2022 report from the Program for International Student Assessment, revealed a “strong association” between smartphone distraction and student outcomes. The report found 80 per cent of responding Canadian students reported being distracted by other students’ devices in math class.

Currently, WSD has a patchwork of policies in its 79 schools; the review is meant to give more direction to teachers about when and where cellphones should be allowed.

Since most students have a cellphone, monitoring use has become tougher, Henderson said.

Roughly 77 per cent of youth own a smartphone: Survey

Roughly 77 per cent of youth between the ages of nine and 17 have their own smartphone, as per a 2021 survey conducted by MediaSmarts, a charity dedicated to promoting digital and media literacy in Canada.

In early 2024, Quebec began prohibiting students from using phones in classrooms, while education officials in B.C. announced recently that strict rules to limit use, which is distracting for both students and teachers, will take effect in September.

Ontario introduced a universal ban in 2019 that requires enforcement by teachers.

The Manitoba Association of Education Technology Leaders has asked the provincial government not to ban phones in school, citing their usefulness in teaching.

In a letter to the government, the group — made up of educators and IT professionals in school divisions across the province — recommended guidelines that would help students learn how to use devices “efficiently and responsibly” by allowing flexibility among grade levels, communities and individuals. It would include ideas to help teachers leverage guidelines to meet educational goals.

Province declines to comment on cellphone use legislation

The provincial education department declined to comment on possible legislation regarding cellphone use, citing a ban on government advertising during the period before the June 18 byelection in Tuxedo.

The office of Education Minister Nello Altomare said he continues to have conversations with stakeholders regarding the use of smart phones in the classroom.

In February, internal discussions on how best to tackle concerns about phones being a distraction in classrooms began at the provincial level. At the time, cabinet communications director Amy Tuckett-McGimpsey hinted at an upcoming announcement.

To date, no announcement has been made.

Louis Riel School Division’s superintendent believes cellphones can be useful in the classroom setting, but admits social media apps are distractions. The division gives discretion to teachers as to whether cellphones can be used during learning periods.

“It is about classroom management,” said superintendent Christian Michalik. “Cellphones and laptops aren’t allowed in a classroom if they’re not used to support learning. So, we’re mindful of not leaving it to the students’ discretion.”

While no formal request has been made by trustees or parent groups, Michalik is not ruling out future discussions on the subject.

St. James-Assiniboia and Pembina Trails divisions are in the process of reviewing their policies, by looking at feedback from students, staff and parents, the Free Press was told.

nicole.buffie@freepress.mb.ca

Nicole Buffie
Multimedia producer

Nicole Buffie is a reporter for the Free Press city desk. Born and bred in Winnipeg, Nicole graduated from Red River College’s Creative Communications program in 2020 and worked as a reporter throughout Manitoba before joining the Free Press newsroom as a multimedia producer in 2023. Read more about Nicole.

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