The Highland Council area in northwest Scotland is preparing to welcome consultations about a mobile phone ban in classrooms. This new initiative directly addresses a growing bipartisan issue of concern — the distraction that smartphones have made on our children’s education. Labour Party Councillor Michael Gregson & Conservative Party Councillor Helen Crawford are two proponents of this idea. Secondly, it demonstrates that local authorities are taking a growing consensus view that tighter controls on mobile phone use in schools are necessary.
In May, council members voted unanimously to support the proposal and further investigate this issue. Ultimately, the hope is to accurately measure how mobile phones affect student learning and classroom environment as a whole. Perhaps coincidentally, the councillors hope to improve student outcomes by making it more difficult to use a mobile phone during the school day.
Two schools within the Highland area have already taken steps to engage their communities on this pressing issue, hosting consultations to gather feedback from parents, students, and educators. These early discussions may serve as a model for the broader consultations planned across dozens of schools in the area.
As a part of this effort, 23 schools will conduct plebliscites on the matter. This should happen in earnest during the 2025-26 academic year. These discussions will provide an opportunity for stakeholders to voice their opinions and experiences regarding mobile phone use in classrooms. These consultations can lead to significant policy shifts. These modifications, in addition to shaking up what goes on inside mobile phones, would radically change the game for mobile phone utilization in schools.
The entire council is scheduled to meet this Thursday. In this meeting, we hope to hear more about what these consultations will entail and what they mean for the future. The council hopes to complete a draft position that incorporates the best ideas from this community input.
