My perspective on this debate: The cell phone ban does not affect my professional life; however, I do have children in the K-12 system, so this cell phone ban bandwagon is of interest to me personally.
Cell phone “bannedwagon”.
Cell phone bans in schools are trending at the moment. Seven provinces implemented a cell phone policy in 2024, with Manitoba strengthening its existing policy. Most of the policies have a form of educational purposes as an exception, but from what I am hearing from teachers in these classrooms, this exception is not yet being used. The common rationale from the provinces for the ban is to decrease distraction and increase focus in the classroom. From what I can source, other support for these bans comes from the idea that cell phones in schools affect academic performance, are linked to mental health issues, increase disruptive classroom behaviours, and increase the digital divide. Empirical evidence from cell phone bans in France and the UK points to improved classroom behaviour, academic outcomes, and greater social interaction in schools.
These arguments appear to make sense and the results seem promising. If simply removing the offender from the situation improves all of the above, how easy it is to simply remove it from the equation? Let’s call this Side A.