Ban on mobile phones in schools :

Throwing baby with bathwater

Jayanthi LIYANAGE

Following the shock waves rippling through the country with the suicide of a student in a leading girls' school in Colombo after being nabbed with a mobile phone in possession, the Government moved to ban the use of mobile phones by students in schools. The Daily News interviewed a cross section of the public to elicit their views on whether they agree or not with the enforced ban and their reasons for doing so.

Varuni, A Grade Seven student in a Colombo girls' school said that children of her age did not need mobile phones in school. "If we want to call home, we can get written permission from our class teacher and call from the school office. When we have to go for tuition classes or extra curricular activities after school, our mothers wait outside the school so there is no necessity to call them."

Kumudini Samuel, Executive Director, Women and Media Collective, said, "Banning of mobile phones in schools is a minor matter. We need to look at the whole education system in depth. I do not think a child will commit suicide just because she was found with a mobile phone. We need to think about what we are doing to our children. With the development of information technology in electronic and print media, we are losing touch with our children. That child committed suicide because she did not have a space to talk, perhaps with a counsellor. We are becoming regimental in disciplinary matters, in military fashion."

Chamari, a mother of a school-going son and a daughter in the primary section of Musaeus College, said that having mobile phones created unnecessary problems for students. "The older girls might use these phones to call their boy friends and this usage is more among boys than girls. They might watch internet movies unsuitable for children on their phones. But, keeping a mobile phone is useful for the parents to keep track of when their children go to tuition classes and return."

Lali de Silva, another mother of a schooling son and a daughter felt that the usage of mobile phones among schoolchildren is contrary to the Sri Lankan culture, being an innovation coming from the West. "School-going children should be in the care of their parents and not go above them. My son who is an Advanced Level student, imposed his own targets on studies and voluntarily locked up his computer and handphone during the time he was preparing for exams."

Deepika, a mother with a daughter in Musaeus College, also agreed that children should not use mobile phones in schools. "There are security measures in schools and students can call home when required using the school office phone. The computer facility called facebook enables users to provide their personal details and photos to chat with outsiders which is very risky. In other countries students link with their teachers on-line to do their homework. But here, on-line facilities are not being put to good use. The suicide of the child shows that there could have been a lack of communication between her and her parents."

Fonseka, a tuition master providing individual English tuition to school-going children, cited a case when one of his female students had given her mobile phone number to her boyfriend to call her during tuition periods. The boy used to call her after tuition and threaten the tuition master when told that

she is not available. The matter concluded with her mother confiscating the mobile phone she had given her daughter and asking the tuition master not to allow her usage of his phone.

Principal, Devi Balika Vidyalaya, Colombo, Dhammika Jayaneththi, pointed out that permission had not been there earlier for students to use mobile phones in school and whether a Government circular is necessary to impose the ban. "It is not the possession of a mobile phone which is wrong but the manner of using it. It is good that parents keep in touch with their children but when the children exceed their limits in the usage, it is wrong. This usage is more among boys than girls. We have about 2,200 students in our school and if every morning, we are to take the mobile phones of children into our safe custody and return them in the afternoon, we will not have time to spend on teaching.

Monied children bring these phones to school and the less affluent children hanker after them. Today's electronic media pushes our children into enjoyment pursuits that do not last which then makes it difficult for us to cultivate good values in them. Steps must be taken to discipline the minds of children. We are satisfied about the measures in our schools but that is not the case in some other schools, going by the things that are reported to have had happened.

We must speak to our children in a manner that do not mentally depress them. I have spoken to one child in our school and she admitted that she did wrong and changed her behaviour. There are children who have problems with their parents and are under great pressure. When children become distant from their parents, the children take harsh measures which is not right. They should be prevented from taking impulsive undue decisions."

Former Principal, Devi Balika Vidyalaya, Colombo, Kalyani Lakshman, commented that the previous security situation in the country forced some parents to keep in touch with their children through a mobile phone. "Now the security situation has changed for the better so that steps may not be needed any longer. In Japan, a child is sent to school with the mobile phone hung around his or her neck. In Sri Lanka, although technology has developed, children are not mature enough to put it to good use and misuse it. They are not made knowledgeable to use technology for constructive use. They might watch pornographic movies downloaded into mobile phones from the internet and boys could form themselves into gangs, and move on to use drugs. If we ban use of technology, the children do not learn to use it for betterment. I feel what we should do is to make them knowledgeable about how to use new technology for one's development. In cities, children from well-to-do families have mobile phones but in the villages, only a handful of children have them. We must talk to them quietly on a personal level, in small groups, about the reasons why they use the phones. When you say do not use something, they may be provoked into doing what you tell them not to do."

Mrs. Weeraratne, another former Principal of a girls' school, approved of the ban of mobile phones in schools. "Although technology is developed, some children misuse such facilities. At that age, they are naturally curious about sexual matters and nude pictures that could be downloaded from internet. The school curriculum may not have realistic programs about life. Sex education is still not happening in the way it should, by which children can find out all they want to learn. Some children are very sensitive and if found with nude pictures on their mobile phones, are in great fear of what might happen to them. Yet again, there are children who can face such a situation without becoming unduly disturbed. Technology can be a big problem for a school's administration. There are facilities by which about four people can link at once on a mobile phone and talk to each other. It can hamper a child's studies. I had a girl staying with me to go to school. She had been given a mobile phone by her aunt and she used it to link with three other boys and had even gone to the beach with them. Ultimately, she had to stop her studies and go back home. Such phone circles can even threaten its members. Today's children are very clever in catching up with technology and that is the generation gap between us and them. But such technology can be a great barrier to a school's administration."

Ranasinghe, who works for a private telecommunication service provider, pointed out no person under eighteen years of age are allowed to purchase a mobile phone connection. "One must produce the national identity card, a passport or a driving licence for such a purchase. For children to have mobile phones, their parents or any other adult must buy the phones in their name. But there are small retail communication outlets from which people known to them can buy a phone connection and get an immediate activation. Such retailers are required to verify with the Head Office of the said phone connections, and post the subscriber enrollment form, but this third party verifications may not be happening the way they should."

Patrick Amarasinghe, President of Young Entrepreneurs Sri Lanka, conducting entrepreneurship education in government schools said, "Children should not be allowed to take mobile phones not only to schools but also to tuition classes. The schools have the responsibility to inform the parents or guardians in case of any emergency."

"Parents and guardians should ensure that phones are not misused when not in school, at home and elsewhere. With technology developing so fast children should be guided to use the positive side of technology. Apart from mobile phones, children are hooked to Game Boys, I pods, Play Stations. Some parents who can afford give their children expensive items create frustration among children who cannot have them.

This creates conflicts at home pressurizing parents who do not give these items to such children even if they can afford it. I have read somewhere that even Bill Gates, the founder of Microsoft doesn't allow his children to use i-pods. The tragic event of a student committing suicide has created much concern and worry.

A major responsibility also rests on enterprises marketing these products to guide children in the right direction. There should be effective media campaign for parents/children to understand the ill effects on children in exposing them to the negative side of today's technology."

Sharni Jayawardena, a freelance writer said, "The mobile phone does have its usefulness for students, particularly for children whose parents have erratic schedules. But I do believe they can be a distraction that the school and classroom environment can well do without. Yet, it shouldn't be the role of the State to make decisions on whether the use of mobile phones in schools should be allowed or not. I can see the State setting a dangerous precedent here, and I hope that it at least leaves private schools to decide for themselves. The State is showing increasing signs of interfering in the private sphere. We need to do all that we can to protect our personal autonomy."

(Some names have been changed to protect their privacy.)

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Director General, Telecommunication Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka, Priyantha Kariyapperuma said that in order to facilitate connectivity between students and their parents, pay phone companies will be requested to operate more coin phones in schools. "Times have changed now from the days when mothers used to stay at home. Often, both parents work and the children are looked after by servants and drivers.

If children go for tuition after school or if the mother is a nurse working in the evening and the children need to contact their parents, they can take a call from the coin phone. In an emergency, they can tell their teachers and take a call from the Principal's office. But the use of mobile phones in schools is not acceptable as it goes against basic discipline.

We have 12 million mobile phones and all the mobile phone owners have been asked to register themselves. After school, there are no controls and children can then use any phone. If the school has a counter to keep the mobile phones, they can keep the phones there during school hours.

There are predators who could send bad materials as SMS and MMS and that is why if the phone is registered, we can catch the culprits. The ban of mobile phones in school is a decision of the Minister of Education.

After children are aged over 18 years, they are adults and then the use of mobile phones is okay."