Schools that ban mobile phones see better academic results
It is a question that keeps someparents awake at night. Should children be allowed to take mobile phones toschool? Now economists claim to have an answer. For parents who want to boosttheir children’s academic prospects, it is no.
The effect of banning mobile phonesfrom school premises adds up to the equivalent of an extra week’s schooling over a pupil’s academic year, according to research byLouis-Philippe Beland and Richard Murphy, published by the Center for EconomicPerformance at the London School of Economics.
“Ill Communication: The Impact of Mobile Phones onStudent Performance” found that after schools bannedmobile phones, the test scores of students aged 16 improved by 6.4%. Theeconomists reckon that this is the “equivalent of adding five days to the school year”.
The findings will feed into theongoing debate about children’s access to mobile phones. In the UK, more than 90% of teenagers own amobile phone in the US, just below three quarters have one. The prevalenceof the devices poses problems for head teachers, whose attitude towards thetechnology has hardened as it has become ubiquitous.
In a survey conducted in 2001, noschool banned mobiles. By 2007, this had risen to 50%, and by 2012 some 98% ofschools either did not allow phones on school premises or required themto be handed in at the beginning of the day.
However, some schools are starting toallow limited use of the devices. New York mayor Bill de Blasio has lifted a10-year ban on phones on school premises, with the city’s chancellor of schools stating that it would reduceinequality.
This view is misguided, according toBeland and Murphy, who found that the ban produced improvements in test scoresamong students, with the lowest-achieving students gaining twice as much asaverage students. The ban had a greater positive impact on students withspecial education needs and those eligible for free school meals, while having no discernible effecton high achievers.
“We found that not only did studentachievement improve, but also that low-achieving and low-income students gainedthe most. We found the impact of banning phones for these students wasequivalent to an additional hour a week in school, or to increasing the schoolyear by five days.
“Therefore, de Blasio’s lifting of the ban on mobile phoneswith a stated intention of reducing inequalities may in fact lead to theopposite. Allowing phones into schools will harm the lowest-achieving andlow-income students the most.”
The research was carried out at Birmingham, London, Leicesterand Manchester schools before and after bans were introduced. It factored incharacteristics such as gender, eligibility for free school meals, specialeducational needs status and prior educational attainment. “Technological advancements arecommonly viewed as increasing productivity,” the economists write. “Modern technology is used in theclassroom to engage students and improve performance. There are, however,potential drawbacks as well, as they could lead to distractions.”
ArticleSource: http://www.theguardian.com/education/2015/may/16/schools-mobile-phones-academic-results
Image Source:http://1xhntt30cl5f49ir1f34ry7j.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/t2lgif.jpg
VOCABULARY WORDS:
1. Boost (v.) ~ help or encourage
2. Reckon (v.) ~ establish byｃounting or calculation
3. Prevalence(n.) ~ the condition of being common
4. Ubiquitous(adj.) ~ present or found everywhere
5. Premises(n.) ~ a house or building together with its land and outbuildings
6. Eligible(adj.) ~ having the right to obtain something
7. Discernible(adj.) ~ able to be distinguished
8. Drawback(n.) ~ a feature that renders something less acceptable
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION:
1. What is your stand on allowing cell phone inschools? Discuss your answer.
2. What are the possible effects of cell phone onstudent’s academic performance?
3. How doeshaving a cell phone affect the equality of students inside the school?
