out of range
From September 1 of this year, Russian schools will ban the use of mobile phones in the classroom. This was announced by the head of the Ministry of Education Sergey Kravtsov at the all-Russian parents’ meeting, reports TASS.
According to the minister, the requirement is introduced in accordance with the new sanitary rules. “We have cell phones in the classroom from this academic year, I emphasize that their use is not allowed. In the lessons. So that mobile phones do not distract school-age children from classes,” he said.
Kravtsov justified the ban, as parents could call or text their children during recess.
The head of the department added, “If there is an emergency, the parents will definitely call, they will say there is a teacher, a classroom teacher.”
However, not all teachers agree with this requirement. The interregional union of educators Uchitel told socialbites.ca that the ban was excessive and would not have the desired effect. On the contrary, some teachers supported the initiative.
Is the smartphone to blame?
According to the law “On Education”, the decision on such bans is made independently by each school, Vsevolod Lukhovitsky, a member of the board of the Interregional Union of Education Workers “Teacher”, told socialbites.ca.
“If parents, teachers and children as participants in the educational process decide that this is necessary in their school, then it will. To do this, amendments to the statute, a separate local law or internal regulations will be required,” he said.
According to him, Kravtsov, with his statement, wants to show that he cares for schoolchildren before September 1. “I think we’re going to get a lot more explanations from various officials and politicians about how they look at school before September 1. Instead of doing the normal funding of the school and the normal management of the school,” said Lukhovitsky.
At the same time, the expert is confident that smartphones are not the obstacle for students to study in the classroom.
“There’s a notion that it’s cell phones that are interfering. I believe it is the general environment at school that is interfering, not cell phones. A mobile phone does not prevent a good school,” added Lukhovitsky.
He also pointed out that the application of such bans in individual schools has been contested in the past. A representative of Uchitel said: “Prosecutor’s checks have already been carried out in different regions following complaints from families, and the prosecutor’s office stated that it is illegal to deprive children of cell phones.”
According to Lukhovitsky, many parents believe that the child should be able to communicate with them at any time. “And the school will be able to determine how to do it: either do it itself with a phone in hand, or raise his hand to ask the teacher because he will get sick,” said the expert.
Have the kids lost control?
Honored teacher of Russia, Alexander Snegurov, in a conversation with socialbites.ca, said that the vast majority of children in the classroom are distracted by mobile phones.
“Of course there will be many conflicts here in connection with this order that I generally support. But what if my mom calls urgently? So how did we live without such emergency calls for decades? she stated.
According to Snegurov, despite the mandatory ban, it is important for the teacher to create an atmosphere of trust in the classroom. “It is imperative that the teacher be trusted, the environment pedagogical, and then the children will not object to this type of phone collection. This is an important condition,” he said.
The historian said that in some schools, individual teachers introduce their own tool collection before class: a blanket with phone pockets hangs by the door of the classroom.
“The virtual world is advancing at a very high speed, and during the summer many children just got to the top, and the pedagogical process still requires the connection of the child’s consciousness, emotions in the lesson.” he concluded.
Irina Mazirka, head of the Association of English Language Teachers of the Moscow Region and linguist, told socialbites.ca that soon after her students began to voluntarily collect their smartphones in a special bag in the first row, she became more attentive in the classroom.
“Adolescents are actually addicted. Here they are, hearing nothing, seeing nothing, sitting and chatting on these phones. And it has nothing to do with interest in a foreign language. “I think it’s at the disease level,” he said.
According to the linguist, in the future this problem will only worsen in higher education institutions.
“There is no such term in English – it exists, but it does not exist. He is only physically present, but does not hear what they are saying, does not hear the explanation, ”Mazirka said.
In a conversation with socialbites.ca, a teacher of Russian language and literature Lyubov Pavlyuchenkova, representative of the Public Council for the Modernization of Education, said that schoolchildren actively use smartphones to cheat, so the ban is justified.
“It interferes with the teacher’s business. These [с помощью мобильного телефона] they are cunning – they do not teach, teachers do not listen, rather they chik-chik-chik under the table and answer the question given by the teacher. “I don’t think it’s necessary to have a cell phone in the classroom,” he said.
Consider parents’ opinions
The leader of the National Committee of Parents, Irina Volynets, in an interview with socialbites.ca expressed her confidence that such a ban should not be made mandatory, but should be discussed with the parents of schoolchildren.
“For this measure, it is necessary to get the understanding and consent of the parents instead of a strict ban. It’s really effective in my opinion. Gadgets leave children behind. “Even if it’s not about games, it’s about social networks,” he stressed.
According to social activists, not listening to parents’ opinions in some schools will lead to conflict situations. “Ultimately, this can lead to negativity and new problems. It would be right to make sure that the school agrees with everything in agreement with the parents, ”explained Volynets.
The chairman of the committee said that parents should also persuade their children to give up smartphones in classes.
“I myself established with the children that it is impossible to use the phone during lessons. Not all parents have this point of view, and the main task is to convince them that this is the only way for the child to avoid falling behind in the educational program, ”he added.
According to him, a child with a smartphone addiction will not only suffer from problems in school classes – at an older age he will not be able to concentrate on lectures and seminars at the university, and then the problem will continue at work.
“The best solution is to persuade the kids to turn off the sound and put the phone in the bag. This does not humiliate the child whose teacher would have to take the phone away like a supervisor,” he said.
From January 1, 2021, new sanitary and epidemiological requirements for educational and training institutions in Russia are in force, according to which “mobile communications are not used for educational purposes”.
Cell phones cannot be used instead of computers or tablets during the lesson, because such gadgets have a small screen size, which causes eye strain and poor posture. area Ministry of Education.