Prince Charles’s former school has highlighted the success of a classroom mobile phone ban and encouraged others to follow.
A discussion was sparked yesterday about whether phones should be allowed in school by comments from Jane Prescott, the incoming president of the Girl’s Schools Association, who said the devices were being “demonised.”
Ms Prescott further stated that mobile phones could be used in a positive manner and attempts to prohibit them from the classroom are “futile” in today’s modern technological age.
But the principal of Gordonstoun Lisa Kerr responded in opposition to Ms Prescott’s comments yesterday.
The Moray boarding school is entering its third year of banning mobile devices in the classroom, which the principal reports has been a hugely beneficial for pupils.
Ms Kerr said: “Technology has an important role to play in the classroom but it has to be controlled. Teenage brains aren’t sufficiently developed to exercise the necessary self-control so the adults in their lives need to set boundaries.
“Just as you wouldn’t leave out bowls of sweets and expect children to eat sensibly, we need to help our students to control technology rather than allowing technology to control them.”
Gordonstoun’s principal was pleased to see that well-known TV presenter Davina McCall expressed on Twitter her backing of the policy to banish phones from classrooms and in disagreement to Ms Prescott’s statements.
Ms Kerr added: “We’d be delighted to invite her to come and visit us to see our mobile phone ban in operation and to discuss how we might facilitate wider discussion around this topic.”
Additionally, last month the head teacher of Michaela Community School in London, Katharine Birbalsingh compared the level of threat of mobiles devices to that of alcohol and cigarettes. She urged the government to outright forbid the use of phones in schools across the UK.
Gordonstoun, which is one of the UK’s most famous boarding schools, introduced a mobile phone ban in 2017 which disallows pupils from using their device during the school day unless they are told to do so by a teacher or there is a special condition.
Their principal reports that they saw benefits of this immediately, most notably the increase of noise levels as the children were engaging in conversations more, which develops invaluable social skills.
Ms Kerr also reported that there had been no complaints from parents following the ban in the two years since it was implemented and that, in fact, parents strived to send their children for that reason.
Ms Kerr said: “They know that, in our school, that pressure has been removed and their child will be having real, not virtual, adventures.”