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At St. Fanchea’s College, we have updated our Mobile Phones Policy.
We believe wholeheartedly that the mobile phone is a distraction to learning and impacts negatively on the well -being of our young people. There is a wealth of evidence available out there to support this position. Jonathan Haidt’s book, ‘The Anxious Generation’ highlights the issues arising from prolonged phone use among young people. See Jonathan explaining a little bit about the impact in this video clip.
As part of our commitment to fostering a focused and distraction-free learning environment, Saint Fanchea’s College will be implementing a new initiative titled ‘Focus over Phones’. More and more schools are going phone free, and we are excited to be part of this initiative.
The initiative is part of a pilot programme led by the Department of Education Northern Ireland (DENI) and involves the use of lockable magnetic pouches to securely store mobile phones during the school day.
The solution is being provided by Vietec, with Odyssey Education serving as project managers for the scheme.
Key details of the new policy include:
– Each pupil will receive a personal lockable pouch with a magnetic lock.
– Pupils will be required to place their mobile phones in the pouch upon arrival at school.
– Locking and unlocking stations will be installed at key entry and exit points of the school building.
– Phones will remain inaccessible throughout the school day, including break and lunch times.
We know the pouches are going to take a while to get used but the system is foolproof and we believe they will have great benefits in terms of focus on learning, greater social interactions and less pressure on well-being for our students.
