Frustrated teachers disconnect anxious students – Winnipeg Free Press

More school leaders in Manitoba are asking students to go completely offline during school hours and asking staff to lead by example in positive phone use.

Tuxedo's Laidlaw School, Beliveau College in Windsor Park and West Kildonan College are among those to announce stricter guidelines for personal devices in 2024.

“Ultimately, we want our children to disconnect from their devices and reconnect with their classmates and teacher,” said Adam Hildebrandt, principal of West Kildonan College. “We think it's the best thing for them to learn.”

Hildebrandt began his career in high school in 2004. Around 2010, it became common for her students to take their personal devices with them wherever they went, and her classroom was no exception.

“We think it's the best thing for them to learn.”– Chief Adam Hildebrandt

According to the career teacher, he was not like many of his colleagues – initially he accepted them as a tool for further learning and building relationships, and based on his professional experience, he helped others learn to use them responsibly.

Since then, increased screen time among young people has led many to question whether phones should be in school, he said, noting that he spent much of the summer researching the issue.

“It just happened to us,” he said.

By extending bathroom breaks, the announcements became a distraction during class, as teenagers lost time while individually scrolling.

The solution Hildebrandt and his staff have come up with is simple—phones should be placed in lockers or special places in each room during class. Starting this week, students can only respond to texts and scroll through social media during free time, during lunch, and before and after school.

Banning phones throughout the school year has become a hot topic in the educational environment.

Over the weekend, families at Laidlaw School received notices that children are only allowed to use personal devices for educational purposes, including translation services and checking tests, and with the express permission of a teacher.

Beliveau College recently released details of a pilot that will see Year 9 and 10 students put their phones in a locked container, while older students turn off or mute their phones and “keep them out of sight” during classes for the rest of the year. .

The Franco-Manitobain branch imposed a blanket ban in the fall to quell protests from teachers competing with phones for students' attention and the inability to control use without a general policy supporting them.

One semester, the head of Louis-Riel College said there was no turning back; in fact, Rémy Lemoine supports a ban in Manitoba and Canada.

Each classroom at St. Boniface School is equipped with “une pochette” (a hanging storage device with pockets) where students are expected to leave their devices before the start of class.

“We talk about it every day over the intercom, a reminder that you have two choices: the pocket or the closet.”– Remy Lemoine

“We talk about it every day over the intercom, reminding us that you have two choices — pocket or closet,” Lemoine said, which is also told to families in weekly newsletters about the ban.

Equipped with a basket for students' phones, the principal randomly checks the classroom as part of the school's enforcement plan. Suspension periods may be extended until the end of the school day for repeat offenders, and parents of persistent offenders are encouraged to discuss the chronic problem.

Lemoine said teenagers are willing to push the limits and challenge the rules, but since the new rule was introduced, he has had to confiscate fewer phones throughout the school year.

While some students continue to hide their devices, they are less concerned because they don't want to be caught and have to give them up, he added.

The results of a new survey conducted at the Louis Riel school division suggest that students start bringing phones to school as early as 1st grade, although it is usually in 7th grade for most.

37 school administrators weighed in on the topic after a general unit meeting last month. Many respondents mentioned problems with restricting access to their buildings.

Some suggested that banning cell phones would undermine teachers' autonomy. Others raised enforcement concerns, suggested curriculum updates to examine students' interactions with technology, and warned that illegal devices work against promoting “safe and responsible use.”

“This is the worst way to create a welcoming and shared environment. “He greets the student informally by saying, 'I don't believe you,'” one said.

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