It is widely reported this morning that the Education Secretary,
, will issue guidance
tantamount to a ban on mobile phones in schools as she addresses
the Conservative Party Conference today. NASUWT would not support
a UK-wide ban on mobile phones in classrooms.
was due to speak at the
NASUWT Fringe event at the conference on Sunday 1 October but
dropped out at the last minute. The event was attended by over 70
delegates and panellists led a discussion around the resources
needed to build a world-leading education system.
In September, NASUWT – The Teachers’ Union
released the results of our
Behaviour in Schools survey, which analysed responses from
over 6500 teachers across the UK. The survey showed that
teachers’ biggest concerns in the classroom are verbal and
physical abuse. 73% of teachers reported that this poor behaviour
seemed to be a product of poor social skills following COVID-19
restrictions, and 60% said that use of restorative behaviour
programmes was ineffective and contributing further to
behavioural problems in pupils. A far smaller number of teachers
reported that mobile phones caused behavioural issues in the
classroom.
Dr Patrick Roach, General Secretary at NASUWT – The
Teachers’ Union, said:
“This behaviour crisis has become embedded on this government's
watch. The lack of joined up solutions, multi-agency working and
properly resourced behaviour support are just some of the
systemic factors making a challenging situation worse.
“Teachers across the country would welcome more support around
dealing with the problems caused by social media. But abusive use
of mobile phones is not just confined to the classroom and we
need to see better support for schools and families when problems
arise.
“The Government needs to focus on properly supporting the work of
teachers and headteachers rather than announcements designed to
detract attention from more than a decade of policy failure.
“If the Government introduces blanket bans that are
unenforceable, this will make the behaviour crisis worse, not
better."
