The U.K. government is mulling a blanket ban on mobile phones in schools across England, local media reported Monday.
Education Secretary Gillian Keegan is expected to announce the ban later Monday during the Conservative Party's annual conference in Manchester, the Daily Mail reported, citing an unnamed source.
The source said that the new guidance would be issued to schools across England, requiring them to take action for violations of the ban on smartphones during lessons and break times.
"Gillian believes that mobile phones pose a serious challenge in terms of distraction, disruptive behavior, and bullying," the insider was quoted as saying.
"It is one of the biggest issues that children and teachers have to grapple with so she will set out a way forward to empower teachers to ban mobiles from classrooms," it added.
A mobile phone ban is already in place in some schools, with students required to hand in their phones each morning, but many others still allow their use, particularly during breaks.
A teaching union leader, however, has warned that the plans to introduce a blanket ban on pupils using mobile phones in schools across England are "unenforceable."
Addressing the reports, Patrick Roach, general secretary of the NASUWT teaching union, said: "If the Government introduces blanket bans that are unenforceable, this will make the behavior crisis worse, not better."
A recent survey by the NASUWT of its members in the U.K. on behavior suggested that teachers' biggest concerns were verbal and physical abuse.
The majority of teachers surveyed suggested that poor social skills following COVID-19 restrictions had affected pupil behavior – and a smaller number of teachers reported that mobile phones caused behavioral issues in class.
"This behavior crisis has become embedded on this Government's watch. The lack of joined-up solutions, multi-agency working and properly resourced behavior support are just some of the systemic factors making a challenging situation worse," Roach added.
"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," they said.
