Phone ban benefits school work, play

Ahead of the pack, South Granville Performing Arts High School Principal Joumana Yousef introduced the phone ban in Term 1 of last year after vision test results revealed students were being affected by too much screen time.
She said parents were astonished by the results and the school worked closely with families which led to the ban on mobile phones, ePods and all other devices.
Students can bring their phones to school but they must be turned off and out of sight.
“It’s giving them self-discipline, real world skills and we have not met with any resistance,” Ms Yousef said.
“We’ve even introduced sport at lunch-time to encourage their social engagement and we can really see the benefits in the classroom and in the playground.”
First introducing a phone ban in 2018, Auburn Girls High School Principal Anna Tsouta said when the ban was mandated by the State Government, it made any arguments from non-compliant students much easier.
She said there was no longer the distraction of students being on their phone and not engaged with work because of constant messaging and notifications.
“In the playground, students have valuable time now to connect and communicate with their peers face to face and develop valuable social skills,” Ms Tsouta said.
“This is priceless as previously at every break, students sat with their face in their phones with limited social interaction.
“Since we implemented this policy, the interaction between students has been far more positive and the girls enjoy conversations, laughter and discussions with their friends far more.
“The self regulation skills they are developing regarding not using their phones during school hours, will definitely stand them in good stead later on in the world of work.”