'Digital Pause': France To Roll Out 'Trial Ban' On Phones At School For Students Aged Up To 15

According to The Guardian, about 200 secondary schools will participate in this experiment, which will require students to hand over their devices at the reception on arrival.

Bans on mobile phones in schools have long been debated in Europe, some countries have implemented them by only restricting their use.

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France plans to curb mobile phone use among children by introducing a trial ban at school for students up to the age of 15, aiming to provide a “digital pause”, The Guardian has reported. If the trial is successful, the ban could be rolled out nationwide in January, the report said.

According to The Guardian, about 200 secondary schools will participate in this experiment, which will require students to hand over their devices at the reception on arrival. This initiative takes further a 2018 law that banned students from using phones within the premises but allowed them to keep the devices in their possession. 

The trial ban was announced on Tuesday by acting education minister Nicole Belloubet. 

President Emmanuel Macron had set up a commission on the matter, expressing concern regarding the harmful effects on children’s development and health caused by the overuse of mobile phones.

As per The Guardian, a 140-page report published in March concluded that there was a “very clear consensus on the direct and indirect negative effects” of digital devices on sleep, the lack of physical activity, sight, as well as, being overweight or even obese.  

It said that not only is the “hyper” use of phones bad for children but also for “society and civilisation”. The report recommended that phone usage by children should be controlled: before the age of 11, children should not have phones; 11-to-13-year-olds should have phones without internet access; and children before 15 could have phones with internet access but no social media. The report suggested that children under three should not have access to digital devices at all as it is “not necessary for the healthy development of the child”, The Guardian reported.

Servane Mouton, a neurologist and neurophysiologist who was on the commission, said children up to the age at least six had no use of digital devices, adding that parents should learn how to play with their children, The Guardian reported. 

Bans on mobile phones in schools have long been debated in Europe. Some countries have restricted their use, but don't require students to hand them over. 

In Germany, there is no nationwide formal ban on mobile phones, but most schools have restricted the use of mobile phones and digital devices in classrooms except for education purposes, as per The Guardian.

In the Netherlands, a quasi-ban on phones at secondary schools has been in effect since the beginning of this year. However, it is a recommendation and not an obligation. Starting this school year, the directive will also apply to primary schools.

The Guardian reported that Italy was early to ban phones for school students, introducing one in 2007 before easing it in 2017 and then reimposing it in 2022. It applies to all age groups.