A social media and digital literacy expert warns against a B.C.-wide approach on the non-instructional use of cellphones because most B.C. schools already have policies in place that work for them.
Instead of imposing a blanket ban, Darren Laur, co-founder and instructor at The White Hatter, argues for what he calls an 鈥渆ducational approach鈥�, pointing to the policies of Belmont Secondary School in Greater Victoria as a positive example.
鈥淭he issue of cellphones in classrooms is far from black-and-white,鈥� he said in an article published on the company鈥檚 website. 鈥淚t鈥檚 crucial to recognize that mobile devices are neither a plague nor a panacea for student learning. While they can be distracting and potentially harmful, they also offer opportunities for engagement and learning.鈥�
Laur said in an interview he understands why the question of banning cellphones has popped up again after Quebec gave school districts until Dec. 31 to implement a new directive banning use of cellphones at public elementary and secondary schools except for specific educational purposes. Quebec becomes the second province after Ontario to issue a provincial mandate around cellphone use in classrooms.
But Laur said that a lot of the headlines surrounding developments in Quebec and Ontario are 鈥渘ot necessarily the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.鈥�
Quebec still allows cellphone use in schools but 鈥渙nly at the discretion of the teacher and for鈥ducational purposes.鈥�
Laur said he 鈥渢otally agrees鈥� with that position and most but not all schools in B.C. already have similar policies.
鈥淪o why push that as province when most schools are already doing that?鈥� he said. 鈥淒o I think that the (province) should be adopting a policy to put in place at the provincial level? No, I don鈥檛! I think that should be left up to the school districts and schools to make that decision based upon their needs.鈥�
So why is this question generating so much attention?
鈥淚 think there is a political angle to this,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 think there are some parents, who are pushing for this and some of the parents, who are pushing may not understand the good academic, peer-reviewed research associated with what is going on.鈥�
While Laur acknowledged the inappropriate use of cellphones by some students that can be 鈥渟omewhat distracting to learning,鈥� a complete ban would actually be counter-productive, given the all-present nature of technology and need to navigate, especially in the professional world.
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鈥淚f the goal is to teach kids how to mediate their use of technology in a positive way, what better place to do it than in a school? And allowing schools the ability to do that themselves rather than pushing it a provincial level is important. Why? Because鈥chools will differ from province to province, from district to district, from school to school.鈥�
In other words, local knows best.
鈥淒oes the province have a part of play? Sure they can,鈥� he added. 鈥淭he province can shepherd the issue, but I think setting the policy should be left more to the schools and the school districts.鈥�
With this position, Laur is essentially arguing for the status quo, and a statement from the Ministry of Education and Child Care suggests that won鈥檛 change anytime soon.
The statement points to instances 鈥渨here having access to technology is used as a learning tool and for some students, it is important for accessibility.鈥� It states that, overall, the ministry will continue 鈥�(its) work to monitor and evaluate the issue, as student health and well-being is of the utmost importance to support their continued success.鈥�
Not all voices are content with the status quo. BC United has promised that it would enforce a K-12 classroom ban on non-instructional smartphone use to enhance student engagement as part of larger reforms.
The party would include the re-instatement of letter grades, stronger measures to protect youth against vaping and an 鈥渙n-time and within-budget school construction program.鈥�
wolfgang.depner@blackpress.ca
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