Push for phone-free schools

Concerned parents have called on Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube to develop a national policy to restrict smartphone access in schools so learners can focus on their work and develop socially without the distraction and influence of social media and games.

- Umamah Bakharia

The South African chapter of the global movement Smartphone Free Childhood is pushing for a phone-free school day to improve students' concentration and social interaction and to reduce their dependence on the internet.

"We're talking about a break from the compulsive lure of their screens and the content that the never-sleeping algorithms serve them," the organisation's co-founder Kate Farina said.

Smartphone-free schools require learners to securely lock away their personal electronic devices - including phones, smartwatches, tablets, and gaming devices - making them inaccessible throughout the academic day.

Smartphone Free Childhood has launched a phone-free register where schools can sign up and become accredited.

It provides guidelines on how schools should manage smartphones for educational technology and says "clear and appropriate consequences should be in place and consistently enforced when the policy is violated".

Since the Covid-19 pandemic, schools have rapidly adopted technology to bridge learning gaps. When lockdowns disrupted traditional classes, many schools shifted to online platforms, using tools such as WhatsApp, Google Classroom, and Zoom.