To be annoyed by total phone ban

This. This “need” for a phone is ridiculous. My DS is only 25 and when he was at secondary not all children had phones and my DS wasn’t allowed to take his to school. He only had one from about age 13/14. This was very recently. Children do not need phones. This so-called “need” has sprung up in the last few years. What has changed in that time that means children need a phone? Nothing, other than a further move towards helicopter parenting children and way too much emphasis on “safety”. None of this is doing our children any favours. We are seeing a huge increase in mental health conditions in our young people and if left unchecked will only get worse.

I fully support smart phone bans for under 16s. If I’d known what I know now my DS would never have had one at 13/14. Giving smart phones to 10 year olds is frankly horrifying.

if a child needs to work a problem out themselves when travelling to and from school that’s a good thing. It will mean they gain problem-solving skills and confidence that they can sort out issues themselves without calling a parent or other adult. We need to give our children more independence and freedom and more confidence that they can cope without mummy and daddy standing over them or a call away to sort everything out for them.

I wouldn't be happy with this. I see phones as an integral part of life now. I certainly enjoy mine.

This in spades, except I would say 20-22 years ago, not 15. ^ Many people - including CHILDREN - don't seem to be able to get through a single hour without their bloody phone. A woman I know (aged 30) had her phone die on her a few months ago, and she completely lost her mind. She was hysterical. Ranting and crying, and saying her bank is on there, concert tickets are on there, whatsapp groups, emails - all sorts.

She was on the verge of a breakdown because she was without her phone for two and a half DAYS. It packed up on a Tuesday evening and she got a replacement with the same number by the Friday morning. Yet you'd think someone had stolen a kidney from her!

It's ludicrous how some people are totally dependent on mobile phones. As I said, even children demand them now, and also, their ranty parents demand their children have them. It's batshit.

Children have coped with 11-13 years of school, (and college and uni on top,) for 100s of years, without having their own phone at school/college... Yet now people throw a massive tantrum if their precious child can't have their phone at school. (And so do the children sometimes!)

It's pathetic! Children do not NEED a fucking mobile phone in school. Indeed, children (under 16 anyway,) don't need a mobile phone at all.

Only fifteen years ago no children would have had phones and yet life went on, they went to school, came home, and all was fine.

I’m guessing a fairly small school? There are over 2000 kids at my sons’ secondary so this wouldn’t work. They’ve recently had a consultation on mobile phone policy and when you think about all the possible approaches it can be quite difficult to find a workable system. The magnetic pouches seem quite a good idea, or to simply have a ‘if we don’t see it, we won’t do anything’ approach which is our school’s current approach. It will depend on each school’s particular issues with phone use as well.

and children had Blackberries, really? In the end instead of 15 years make it 25 the point still stands.

At the moment, form tutors don't have time to do this as there are about 3 times as many things to do in form time than the time available, so the school would need to find time to do this. Ditto at the end of the day, students go home directly from their last lesson so the timetable would need to be rearranged to have a time for the tutor group to reassemble, students and tutor.

What happens to the box during the day? How does the box get from the tutor room to the safe place, and back again?

What happens if the tutor is absent, or when a student arrives late or leaves early?

What happens if a student refuses to hand over their phone?

Some students will hand in a phone, but have another still on them or in their bag.

It's a huge amount of time and energy spent on something that has nothing to do with teaching and isn't part of a teacher's job, and schools don't have money to pay administrative staff purely for this.

I don’t see why each form tutor can’t collect all phones in and out in box at registration and then child has to go collect at end of day. That’s what happens in my son’s year 6 class and it works great. When I was at school I only got a mobile when I was like year 9 but before that we had an old school phone booth that we could use at breaks and I’d phone home and pray my mum was in to ask if I could have dinner at my friends house that night. Schools don’t have phones like that anymore.

I don’t see why each form tutor can’t collect all phones in and out in box at registration and then child has to go collect at end of day. That’s what happens in my son’s year 6 class and it works great. When I was at school I only got a mobile when I was like year 9 but before that we had an old school phone booth that we could use at breaks and I’d phone home and pray my mum was in to ask if I could have dinner at my friends house that night. Schools don’t have phones like that anymore.

This. This “need” for a phone is ridiculous. My DS is only 25 and when he was at secondary not all children had phones and my DS wasn’t allowed to take his to school. He only had one from about age 13/14. This was very recently. Children do not need phones. This so-called “need” has sprung up in the last few years. What has changed in that time that means children need a phone? Nothing, other than a further move towards helicopter parenting children and way too much emphasis on “safety”. None of this is doing our children any favours. We are seeing a huge increase in mental health conditions in our young people and if left unchecked will only get worse.

I fully support smart phone bans for under 16s. If I’d known what I know now my DS would never have had one at 13/14. Giving smart phones to 10 year olds is frankly horrifying.

if a child needs to work a problem out themselves when travelling to and from school that’s a good thing. It will mean they gain problem-solving skills and confidence that they can sort out issues themselves without calling a parent or other adult. We need to give our children more independence and freedom and more confidence that they can cope without mummy and daddy standing over them or a call away to sort everything out for them.

One more reason to go back to going to your local school rather than miles and miles across town and country.

Many don’t get the choice to go to their local schools anymore. We wasn’t given any of our choices for primary school so had to drive every day and now secondary school is not even in our city it’s 12 miles away in the next city. Not our choice at all.

One more reason to go back to going to your local school rather than miles and miles across town and country.

Whether secondary school age children need them depends on where you live. Children at dds' school often traveled for long distances on public transport. It would have been a nightmare if they couldn't contact their parents if the buses or trains were late or canceled.

Whether secondary school age children need them depends on where you live. Children at dds' school often traveled for long distances on public transport. It would have been a nightmare if they couldn't contact their parents if the buses or trains were late or canceled.

To an extent, people need mobile phones more these days, and people are more reliant on them, with some things needing apps now. (And there being fewer payphones.) But to act like this woman who I know did - whilst not having her phone for 2.5 days - was insane. She was hysterical. Not sleeping, not able to concentrate on her job (phoned in sick for 2 days!) and just lost it.

And I still believe that children do not not need mobile phones. That's a hill I will die on.

Why can’t the school just collect them in at morning registration and the kids get them back at home time? That’s what ds school does.