How are you reading this sentence? Is it on your phone? I’m guessing for most of you it is. Whether you’re on a bus, sitting in your living room or eating a meal – phones are now probably our number one way of receiving information about the world. We’re inundated with it. Real or invented, entertaining or disturbing, information is poured via the wifi into our lives constantly through that tiny screen in your hand.
But think back to a simpler time when you were a kid. Is there another way young people could maybe receive reliable information that doesn’t rely on websites, bloggers or TikTok videos…?
You thought to yourself – ‘Of course! School! Our faithful teachers!’ – right…??
Didn’t you..?
I hope so.
But as school students now have access to all of world history, science, art and fake news through a device they can carry anywhere, it’s understandable that teachers have some competition in the classroom.
As a teacher, I know that the battle with the small screen can be very real and it’s understandable that schools across the world have phone use policies that students (and staff!) must adhere to.
The latest story to hit the news on this topic comes from Asia. The South Korean government has announced there will be a ban on phones in schools starting from March 2026. It’s not up to individual schools; it’s not the responsibility of local authorities to decide – it’s a nationwide ban from the central government.
The main reason for this is not new. Students get distracted from their studies and it stops them achieving their academic potential, obviously. We can all see the logic that you might not get the grasp of calculus if you’re splitting your time between listening to the teacher… and watching a cat video under the table.
Of course, things were simpler when I was at school.
“Stop looking at your phone under the table!”
– is not a command I could ever imagine hearing from my teacher
…but that’s largely because my phone at the time was shared by my whole family and stayed in my house the whole time plugged into the wall.
Why would I have brought it to school to look at…??!!
But, coming back to the 21st Century, there’s another side to the ‘phones in schools’ debate. There is, of course, a substantial number of people who disagree with a phone ban for a variety of relevant reasons.
Phones can be used in lessons. They’re a source of information and learning apps can be a great way to get a class engaged. I’ve definitely had my students use their phones to find some facts for a project or to play games with the group.
Another argument is just that mobile phones are simply part of life now. They’re not going away. So, removing them from schools results in a very unnatural environment unlike any other situation students find themselves in day-to-day.
So, what’s the answer?
Should mobile phones be allowed in the classroom..?
What kind of controls should be in place..?
Or should there be no controls at all…?
Of course, this brings us back to IELTS! (You knew it would!)
Look at this Writing Task 2 question…
Many argue that smart phone use has a negative effect on student performance and suggest these devices should be banned in this context.
To what extent do you agree or disagree?
This is an opinion essay and it’s asking you to choose a position and argue your side with supporting ideas. In fact, in both IELTS writing and speaking you often need to put forward your position and justify your reasons with a convincing argument.
Crucially and relevantly for this blog – in the IELTS exam you definitely don’t have access to your smartphone, so all of these ideas have to come from things you already know! You can’t search for ideas online and you certainly can’t ask your favourite AI buddy for help.
So, what do you think?
Here’s a challenge for you…
Drag yourself away from your screen for a few minutes and consider your opinion and how you can support this idea using only stuff you already know….
….then come back to your screen again and tell us what you think in the comments below!
Wasn’t that refreshing to leave the internet for a few moments? It gives us all space to think.
Anyway, the full BBC article is available here if you’d like to find out more. Controversially, I actually found it on my laptop, not my mobile because I’m clearly old fashioned….
