Digital Distractions in the Classroom

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On Wednesday, all students and parents/caregivers received an email informing them that from Monday 7 August, we are banning the use of cellphones, smart watches, and earbuds/headphones during class time.

We know digital distractions are the most frequent cause of learning disruptions in the classroom. To help all students and teachers get the most of out of lesson time, we have made the decision to have students surrender their digital items (except laptops) during class time. They will put their devices in a clear plastic box and have them returned at the end of the lesson.

We have had so many emails in support of this initiative and thank all everyone who has taken the time to provide us with this feedback.

We do ask that all parents support us with making this work – too often we have students on their phones outside classrooms “talking to mum/dad”. If you need to get hold of your student during a lesson, please call the school office in the first instance and they will get a message to them. You can contact the office 03 768 4166 or email office@johnpaul.ac.nz

If a student chooses not to comply with the new device rules, the student will be withdrawn from class, and we will ask you to come in and collect their phone/devices. We don't anticipate that this will be a problem with students choosing the option of relinquishing devices during class time rather than a total school wide ban. Any student who takes another's device(s) could face stand down for theft, but we are sure common sense and good judgment will prevail. All students should enable ‘find my phone’ in their security settings just in case.

For your interest, you may wish to see what's happening nationally and internationally in this space.
https://www.nsw.gov.au/media-releases/nsw-government-begins-mobile-phone-ban-public-high-schools#:~:text=NSW%20public%20secondary%20school%20students,students'%20learning%20and%20social%20development.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jul/04/mobile-phones-other-devices-to-be-banned-from-dutch-classrooms
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/education/127674276/who-you-gonna-call-dunedin-high-school-bans-phones
https://www.schoolnews.co.nz/2021/04/mobile-phone-bans-in-schools-on-the-rise/
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/478875/ashburton-college-cell-phone-ban-about-eliminating-disruption-principal