The rise and affordability of mobile phones has changed the social landscape of the teenage years forever. Even teenagers whose parents wisely delay the acquisition of a phone for several years must navigate a social context that is routinely punctuated by the presence of phones.
We know that a phone provides the security and convenience of being able to contact family and friends, seek help, or respond to requests with ease. And we enjoy these benefits when our children have phones, and we often feel safer knowing they’ve got them in their pockets when they are away from us.
But amongst the phone’s challenges to our young people’s wellbeing, we have:
- Constant connectivity that means the pressure of social interaction never lets up
- The ability to photograph, film and instantly share which leaves young people vulnerable to their own poor decisions or the poor decisions of others in sharing on those images
- A range of popular apps that provide addictive dopamine hits but have been also documented to damage mental health with shocking speed and scale
- Sleep disturbance that inhibits their ability to regulate emotions, focus on schoolwork and exercise resilience
- Exposure to online bullying, porn and vicarious trauma that is unfiltered, unrecognised and under-reported by the teens who experience it
- Distraction, distraction and... what was that again?
At school, we ask our students to switch off their phones, lock them away and take a break from that pressure and responsibility. It’s essential that they are undistracted at school and able to work on developing real world skills in human interactions that are not mediated solely through a screen.
We also want them locked away so that every teenager can have confidence that they are going to be able to walk around our school or go into a classroom or a bathroom space without the fear that someone, somewhere, has a phone out and is recording.
This is also essential when we are on camps and excursions. Sadly, we sometimes have parents who permit their child to take a mobile phone on camp, even though we are very clear about our policy around phones on camp. Our great hope is that parents will understand how essential it is for students’ safety and wellbeing to know that they are not staying in a cabin with other young people who might secretly have a phone with them. Parents who support and insist on phones being left at home for camps are helping to ensure a safe environment for all young people on camp.
We regularly educate our students about good digital citizenship and about the reality and responsibilities of the online world. Phones are not going away—they will be part of every young person’s lives eventually. We hope that as they grow, they will develop the wisdom and self-control required to navigate the responsibilities of such a powerful possession. That takes time and comes with only comes with maturity, which is why firm boundaries around phone use is essential for the developing adolescent.
Recently, we updated our procedures and consequences for not putting away phones at school. Students who are found with a mobile phone will now receive a detention for even a first-time instance, as well as their parents being contacted and the phone being placed in our school safe.
We appreciate parents supporting us in ensuring that our school remains free from the distraction and disturbance of phone use. Together we can help protect and promote a healthy space at school for all students.