Phone use in boarding schools Jonathan Pitt responds to Hilary French's article
www.telegraph.co.uk/education/2017/10/10/children1/
As you read newspapers at the moment, they regularly talk about the negatives of social media use whilst simultaneously then promoting some celebrity's Instagram page. The Daily Mail will even do this on the same page with their wall of shame entertainment feed sitting alongside the main news articles. Children see the phone as their main communication means, their main news source, their entertainment source, their music source. It is their whole world packed in the palm of their hand.
So how can we reduce our children's reliance on these phones? Is it even as bad as everyone says and is it the feeling of reliance that is the problem, rather than the phone use itself?
The article I have linked to above is a Telegraph article written by Hilary French (Headmistress of Newcastle High Girls' School) about the dangers of phone use and how she is managing it at her school. There is some interesting research and ideas.
The warnings of blue light impacting sleep patterns is the biggest concern. It is the reason why we take phones in at bedtime in my boarding house and the idea is that without the blue light, the boy's natural body clock kicks in and people fall asleep better. It is a simple idea but as the snapchats stream in from their friends' phones whilst I have then locked away - boys can feel isolated, they can fell like they are being left out of conversations and the dreaded FOMO kicks in (Fear of missing out).
There is no doubt that the management of phones in the lower years has helped friendships within the House, boys actually speak to each other rather than updating their streaks. However, we are living in a world where phones are a major part of who these children are. The launch of the new iPhone this week was met with long lines and people desperate to get their hands on a phone that costs £1000.
Although I will be leaving some of the phone blog entries to the pupils themselves in the future, I would recommend reading the article from the Telegraph and we can then start a conversation about phone use in the boarding house that becomes an open pupil voiced idea rather than just us imposing sanctions from above. Anyway, got to go as I haven't updated my social media yet this morning!
As you read newspapers at the moment, they regularly talk about the negatives of social media use whilst simultaneously then promoting some celebrity's Instagram page. The Daily Mail will even do this on the same page with their wall of shame entertainment feed sitting alongside the main news articles. Children see the phone as their main communication means, their main news source, their entertainment source, their music source. It is their whole world packed in the palm of their hand.
So how can we reduce our children's reliance on these phones? Is it even as bad as everyone says and is it the feeling of reliance that is the problem, rather than the phone use itself?
The article I have linked to above is a Telegraph article written by Hilary French (Headmistress of Newcastle High Girls' School) about the dangers of phone use and how she is managing it at her school. There is some interesting research and ideas.
The warnings of blue light impacting sleep patterns is the biggest concern. It is the reason why we take phones in at bedtime in my boarding house and the idea is that without the blue light, the boy's natural body clock kicks in and people fall asleep better. It is a simple idea but as the snapchats stream in from their friends' phones whilst I have then locked away - boys can feel isolated, they can fell like they are being left out of conversations and the dreaded FOMO kicks in (Fear of missing out).
There is no doubt that the management of phones in the lower years has helped friendships within the House, boys actually speak to each other rather than updating their streaks. However, we are living in a world where phones are a major part of who these children are. The launch of the new iPhone this week was met with long lines and people desperate to get their hands on a phone that costs £1000.
Although I will be leaving some of the phone blog entries to the pupils themselves in the future, I would recommend reading the article from the Telegraph and we can then start a conversation about phone use in the boarding house that becomes an open pupil voiced idea rather than just us imposing sanctions from above. Anyway, got to go as I haven't updated my social media yet this morning!
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