28 Comments
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STEVEN SEAGULL's avatar

Totally on this one. My son calls me every second Monday to ask me if i got paid. On a serious note, mobiles contribute nothing to advancing society.

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Rustica's avatar

They should ban vaping in class at the same time as well.

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Lindy's avatar

Yes they can be a huge distraction, but also useful.

This should be a school by school policy decision, not government interference.

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rhonda jewell's avatar

My 16 year old daughter said the banning of mobile phone use at their school has definitely been beneficial. I quote from her "People are now more likely to focus on class, and it came up in conversation at lunch the other day where people agreed that we definitely talk more because of the ban." So it improves their ability to learn and their ability to socialise. Both critical to their long term mental health.

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James Macpherson's avatar

Exactly!!!!

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Bronx's avatar

As a retired teacher, I am pleased not to deal with this issue on a daily basis. Even students are aware of the negative impact phone use has on learning and retaining information. Students are addicted in many cases. Parents and employers also have a role to play by reducing constant interruptions.

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peter grace's avatar

I saw you last night and again this morning as they repeat the show the following day, so you have already been on twice!

It is good to watch some shows with free speech and Rowan is always over the target, yet without getting hit.

As a retired teacher, I never had phones in class as they were too expensive for kids to own in those days, but I would not allow anyone to have or cause distractions. If they didn't want to be there then I reckoned that they should not turn up in the first place.

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James Macpherson's avatar

Glad you're enjoying the show Peter.

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peter grace's avatar

and again tonight!

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Jillian Stirling's avatar

I used to confiscate them. I don't think children need mobiles in school! parents can always ring the office to leave a message and make the school office people do their job!

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Tony Ford's avatar

As a retired high school teacher I would have said yes when I was teaching but I believe these days they are used as a tool for so much of their learning. Definitely need monitoring though.

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Mary Dodds's avatar

Most primary schools use govt supplied ipads in class, so no need for phones. High schools use laptops I believe.

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Stephen Marshall's avatar

Rowan is on a hiding to nothing here!

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James Macpherson's avatar

Haha ... he doubled down again tonight! Made me laugh. He's a great guy. I'm loving working with him.

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Herma's avatar

Ever since they allowed calculators in schools the educational standards have plummeted, so we don't need more distractions and cheats on tap. Rather than using their own brains, a lot of kids just 'Google' answers, which leads to biased opinions 'no thanks' to the algorithms determined by 'Big Tech'.

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Tom.K's avatar

How many high-schoolers know their tables up to 12 times 12?

Like not needing to be accurate with spelling content in English compositions?

Technology can be a wonderful aid to learning, but the grey matter should still be exercised.

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James Macpherson's avatar

12x12=144

I did that without a device! :)

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Michael Howard's avatar

A total distraction. Ban them. We are heading very fast to the synopsis of “Idiocracy” it seems…

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Diane Molloy's avatar

There is a difference between banning phones at school and not allowing atudents to use their phones in class. The former will never happen, the latter should be a matter of course for all students in all classes.

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James Macpherson's avatar

Yep

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Cody's avatar

Just went and hit "Disagree" without reading the question properly. 😂 Absolutely, they should be banned in class.

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James Macpherson's avatar

Come on Cody!

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James Macpherson's avatar

Come on Cody!!!

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Cody's avatar

I'm letting the team down 🙃

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Lynette Jamieson's avatar

Gee Albo on the ball eh? What a great idea from the PLAN of think tank! WE have had this rule at WAUCHOPE high school for 2 years now ,very sucesfull.

Students issued with pouches, phones inserted each morning not

USED until days end.

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Robyn McPherson's avatar

Don't even need to think about this one. I'm amazed that students are even allowed to have mobile phones in their classrooms. Are they even listening to their teacher...just a huge distraction.

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