Learn from the experience of other country’s primary and secondary schools on mobile phones entering campuses
[Bright Times Review]
Recently, the General Office of the Ministry of Education issued the "Notice on Strengthening the Management of Mobile Phones in Primary and Secondary Schools", stating that in principle, primary and secondary school students are not allowed to bring personal mobile phones into campus. If there is a real need, the parent’s consent and written application must be obtained and after entering the school Hand over your mobile phone to the school for unified storage, and it is forbidden to bring it into the classroom.
As soon as the regulations came out, many teachers and parents who were worried about their children's indulging in mobile games expressed their support. Some parents even suggested that all kinds of electronic products should be banned altogether and mobile phone assignments should be cancelled.
However, in reality, simply disconnecting students from their mobile phones is unrealistic.
The 2018 "Comparative Research Report on Parent-Child Relationship in the Internet Age in China, the United States, Japan and South Korea" shows that the smartphone ownership rate of Chinese primary and secondary school students reached 68.1%, second only to South Korea.
In 2020, the French audiovisual and digital media audience monitoring company "Media Volume" statistics also show that 65% of French 11-14 year olds have their own smartphones, which are usually gifts from relatives and friends.
In fact, with the rapid development of information technology today, the awareness and ability to use information technology are the basic abilities necessary for future learners.
So, how to regulate students' use of electronic products?
The research results of many authoritative organizations such as the World Health Organization show that long-term use of mobile phones can cause harm to the vision, cervical spine and brain development of young people.
As early as 2018, eight departments including the Ministry of Education and the National Health Commission issued the "Implementation Plan for the Comprehensive Prevention and Control of Myopia in Children and Adolescents", which clearly stated that "students are strictly prohibited from bringing electronic products such as personal mobile phones and tablets into the classroom."
In August 2018, the French Ministry of Education also issued a decree prohibiting junior high school and below students from using mobile phones or any other terminal electronic devices (including tablets, smart watches, etc.) in any teaching area, excluding those with communication capabilities that must be used due to physical health. Medical equipment), which aroused widespread heated discussion in the European education community at that time.
The ban has been recognized by most teachers, students and parents in France, and many schools have adopted "zero tolerance" for bringing mobile phones into schools.
In July 2020, California also passed laws authorizing public schools and charter schools to restrict students from bringing mobile phones into the classroom.
Professor Salberg of the University of New South Wales is also actively promoting the implementation of the "machine restriction order" in Australia. He believes that smartphones will distract students from reading, reduce their participation in sports activities and affect their sleep quality.
It can be seen that many countries in the world are aware of the negative effects of excessive use of mobile phones on young people, especially young children, and have widely adopted prohibitive measures.
However, the mobile phone ban does not mean opposing the construction of "digital" campuses or the widespread use of information technology in teaching.
In 2018, UNESCO launched the "School-wide Mobile Learning Initiatives" initiative, and pointed out that mobile technology is part of educational technology. The use of mobile technology alone or in combination with other educational technologies will have Conducive to learning anytime and anywhere, effectively disseminating knowledge, so as to promote the realization of sustainable development goals.
The future world is a world of real social emotions, computers, electronic terminals, and artificial intelligence. Learn to think independently, establish a solid view of right and wrong, stick to the bottom line of individuals and collectives, and sort out the ethics in the digital age. It will be after the ban Issues that need further consideration.
International comparison will bring us a good experience.
For example, in Finland, as early as more than ten years ago, elementary and middle school students were also prohibited from bringing personal electronic products into the school. But today, how to properly use electronic products is an important teaching content in Finland.
Some teachers will take their children to formulate home use rules for mobile phones and platforms, guide students to learn to use electronic products to assist learning in class, and help students how to use mobile phones healthily, including how to make calls politely and how to use online learning resources.
At the same time, mobile phone operators will also assist in installing youth firewalls to prevent students from network infringement and digital interference, supervise students' use of terminals, and intervene in time.
In short, the campus "ban on computers" is far from solving all the problems. The symptoms and root causes are treated at the same time, and the road of information literacy education is still a long way to go.
(Author: Liu Min, Department of Beijing Normal University, Institute of International and Comparative Education Research Associate)