To be annoyed by total phone ban

[TeleGardenGnome]

My child's school which is a busy city location has a total phone ban. So you aren't allowed to take any type of phone to school at all even if it stays hidden in a bag and is on silent and never used. They do bag searches and use metal detectors to find students breaking the rules.

If your child's phone is found they get a detention and you can only get it back by visiting the school in person.

So yesterday my child's phone was found in a bag search and removed. There were awful transport issues and it took them several hours to get home. In the meanwhile we had no way to contact each other.

I can't get the phone back due to work and my husband being away for work. It just stresses me out that he won't be able to get in touch if there's a problem. Expressing my feelings here as there is no point complaining to the school. They don't listen to parental feedback.

Bank card is fine but if it's rarely used then they might forget the pin.
I don't ever look at my kids locations but in case of an emergency it would be handy.

I don't agree that tracking location stunts their independence because without the ability to do that then some kids wouldn't be given the independence or freedom to do the thing or go to the place by themselves at all.

They might be allowed to take the bus by themselves if they have a smart phone and location on, but if not then their parent finds another way for them to get home.

Or they might be allowed to make their own way from school to an afterschool activity as long as they have a smart phone, but if they didn't then they don't get that independence and it has to be arranged that someone else would take them.

I agree that smart phones and social media can cause problems, but a lot use it responsibly.

Can you go above them, and speak to the council. Or get a few other parents and see what they think.School may listen if there are a few of you.Phones are part of life now.There are very few payphones now.

By 1980 72% of households had a phone, by 1990 87% did. So most people did have someone to ring in the 1980s by quite some margin. It was much safer and easier to play out in the 80s as there fewer cars. But children were still vulnerable to abuse.

Even if by some miracle a child manages to find a pay phone, or persuades a shop or a complete stranger to let them use their phone, how many of you actually answer an unknown number - especially at work?
Most will have their child's number set to break through 'do not disturb' , but will obviously know it is their child trying to contact them.

There was usually someone you could ring in an emergency.

You don't need the PIN on a bus, it's tap in and tap out.

Yes, because we definitely didn't do that 20, 30 odd years ago.

Grooming incidences are higher now than ever before thanks to children having unsupervised access to the internet.

I'd agree with the ban if there were still pay phones about that could be used to contact home in the event of a transport issue on the way home etc. I remember having to use the one on my route home from school fairly often when the bus didn't turn up. My parent gave my sister and I these chargeback cards that would add the cost of the call to their bill.

I wasn't just talking about the bus though. In my first comment where I mentioned it I said about transferring the money to the phone if they need it in an emergency...so it could be for anything. And with a bank card I periodically have to use my pin when I'm normally able to tap.

All these hoops to avoid kids using phones are ridiculous. Expensive pouches, non-existent pay phones, etc.

How would School afford to replace phones that had been stolen or damaged while in School custody or how would they make sure to avoid handing wrong phone to wrong child if the "phones are handed in at start of day" What a collosal stupid waste of staff time.

@Seeline that's another very good point. And most employers wouldn't mind a member of staff answering the phone knowing it was their child.

Phones are such an intergal part of life and have been for at least 20-25 years.

I once reported a phone stolen, and gave my mum's house number to the police. They phoned mum they told her nothing to worry about but her phones been stolen....then asked does she have a mobile number?

I can't help feeling that this is a rule designed to make teachers lives slightly easier with no thought or care for the safety of children travelling to and from school. I'm glad my dds' school did not do this. They just had a very strict policy that if any phone was out of the bag or rang, instant detention. They were strict in enforcing it from year 7. Seemed to work. I suspect it doesn't work when they try to enforce a policy after previously not being strict.

Not all children will have physical bus passes though? Mine bought a weekly ticket (digital) or a bundle of 20 tickets (digital) both were a saving over the pay on the bus price.
Why should parents pay more just because school won’t let them have a phone in their own time.

@NotQuiteHere No I’m very happy in my job, thanks for your concern.

I see on a weekly basis the devastating impact that phones have on kids. We tried letting them have their phones as long as they stayed in their pockets, it didn’t work. We tried, letting them have their phones in the breaks, that didn’t work either. The kids I see don’t seem able to regulate their use. It’s all or nothing and that’s why we’ve had to implement the nothing.

The casual bullying, the secret photo or film taking, inappropriate content and the bloody memes.

Parents don’t seem to understand that when you are responsible for 30 kids, it only takes one or two to disrupt a whole activity with their phone use. Don’t get me started on the supposed adults, I can not tell you how many times I have had to remind teachers, parents etc that they can’t use their phones during a theatre performance. Mindlessly scrolling, trying to take photos or videos and even bloody face timing.

It’s not just your kid, it’s the impact it has on a group’s dynamic and how things can turn with a few clicks from being benign to a safeguarding issue.

My DD school has a sensible phone policy. Phones are switched off and unseen. If seen it gets bagged if they have a certain number of bags confiscated parents has to collect.

In year 6 only those in year 6 in primary were allowed and handed them in each day. They were walking alone if parents permitted. Phones are essential for safety and independence.

DS in special ed, goes by school. Transport from home. 14 and does not have own phone as no need

Their are locker companies that will install them and charge the children directly on a school year basis no doubt, just like 'regular' school lockers in school. School would just need to make space available for them.

needs one of those tiny prison phones you can keep up your bum!

So what happened if they took their phone out of their pocket? At DDs' school they got a detention if they had their phone out at any time on the premises. They had that policy from the moment they started school and it worked.

😂

Bag with large metal buckle hiding a small pouch (containing for eg Zanco Tiny T1).

Draconian school rules need imaginative work arounds.

The 2 school rules I hate (together with most kids & staff in my experience) are

1. Total ban on mobiles
2. Kids can only drink water

Results are unsafe travel to/from school & quite a number of dehydrated kids.

Good Luck

PS You could get a petition up and harass the school governors if inclined....but this takes time & patience

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.

That's not true at all, I had a phone when I went to secondary school in 2001. It was a brick phone but we definitely had them! 15 years ago was 2009, of course kids had phones then, blackberry was the in thing then.

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.

@INeedToClingToSomething Agree 100%!