The Minister of National Education has announced the implementation of a “digital break” at school. From the start of the school year, students in 200 middle schools will have to leave their smartphones in a locker, before the process becomes generalized.
Today, young people are owning a smartphone at an increasingly early age. According to a study by the Junior City firm published in 2021, more than half of schoolchildren aged 7 to 14 (55%) own a mobile phone… To the point of arousing concern among parents, teachers and many organizations, who are advocating for supervision of their use, particularly for smartphones. Addiction, violent or inappropriate content, sexual predators… The dangers are numerous, placing the use of these devices at the center of public debate.
Emmanuel Macron himself has repeatedly raised the possibility of imposing restrictions, or even bans, on access to screens for the youngest. The problem has recently been brought back to the forefront in schools where, in addition to the distraction that the device causes and its impact on students’ concentration and learning, several tragic cases have demonstrated their role, sometimes fatal, in cases of cyberbullying.
Also, on August 27, 2024, during her back-to-school press conference, the resigning Minister of National Education, Nicole Belloubet, announced the experiment of banning mobile phones in nearly 200 middle schools from this back-to-school period, in order to implement a “digital break”. This measure should subsequently be generalized from January 2025 – provided that the test returns are positive.
Banning smartphones at school: what application?
In France, smartphones are theoretically banned in high schools and middle schools. The law allows the board of directors of high schools to introduce, in the internal regulations, a ban on the use of these devices by high school students. Students can keep them on them, but are not allowed to use them in the school during or outside of classes, including during breaks. This ban applies during school time, but also outside of school. It is up to each school to determine practical arrangements to ensure compliance with the law. This new measure goes a step further. In concrete terms, students will have to leave their smartphones in a locker when they arrive at school.
This decision follows an expert report on the impact of screens on young people, commissioned by President Emmanuel Macron and submitted on April 30. Nicole Belloubet was keen to clarify that this was not a “refute the educational use of digital technology”On the contrary, the minister spoke of the importance of artificial intelligence in education, calling for the creation of a specific roadmap for its use in schools and colleges. “We must allow teachers to use artificial intelligence”she said.
Banning smartphones in schools: an experiment followed by generalisation
However, this announcement raises some practical questions. Indeed, itIt is the local authorities who will have to manage the practical issues. How will schools logistically manage the drop-off and pick-up of hundreds of phones every day? What will the penalties be for students who don’t follow the rules? Will parents be okay with not being able to contact their little ones whenever they want?
This announcement comes in a particular political context given that Nicole Belloubet belongs to a resigning government, given that Emmanuel Macron has still not appointed a Prime Minister. Also, her action is supposed to be limited to “current affairs”, the scope of which is vague. In theory, they are limited to ordinary subjects or emergencies and do not concern political initiatives at all.
This measure is part of a broader movement of control and limitation of digital technology among young people, carried out by the outgoing government and the President of the Republic well before the dissolution. Emmanuel Macron had notably called, during a press conference held on April 25, to regain control over online content, believing that“Before the age of 15, there must be parental control over access to this digital space“, and advocated for the establishment of“a digital majority at 15 years old in Europe”.
An idea that seems to be shared by the majority of French people since, according to the results of a barometer on the use of screens by children and adolescents published last July, 73% of them say they are in favor of banning social networks for children under 15, and 75% of those surveyed want their use to be severely restricted in high schools (see our article).