Back to School: Cellphones banned but students still need laptops, tablets

Hutt Valley secondary school teacher Olivia Hammond is interested to see whether teachers will get more support to implement the ban.

With school starting next week, it’s time for parents and kids to get organised – and the Herald is here to help. Today Melissa Nightingale looks at devices

Don’t vote for National - they’ll take away your phones.

That was the message some teens were putting out pre-election last year. But despite their concerted efforts, National’s cellphone ban will be rolling in part-way through the year, though it’s expected schools will start implementing bans from the start of Term 1.

Of course, it doesn’t mean students will be screen-free, with tablets and laptops well and truly entrenched in school stationery lists.

Some parents will be counting their pennies this summer as they try to provide devices for their kids to take to school - but the focus this year is on having one less screen available to students during their school day.

The new National policy means school students will officially be banned from having their cellphones at school from Term 2 this year.

Education Minister Erica Stanford announced last month the ban would apply from Term 2, by which point all schools would be required to have a cellphone policy in place.

“While the policy officially takes effect from Term 2, 2024, it is our expectation that most schools will implement the policy from Term 1.”

Schools could decide for themselves how to apply the policy, she said.

“Options that have been successfully used in some schools include having students hand in their cellphones before class or leaving them in their lockers or bags for the day. Exemptions will be allowed for students with health conditions or in special learning circumstances.”

Auckland mum Marcella Thumath was a firm believer in the policy.

“It’s an interesting one, isn’t it? Look, I’m for it,” Thumath said.

“My daughter’s school, they currently have a ban where they have to drop the phone off to the office in the morning and then they can’t get it until after school.”

Thumath’s daughter was “very social” and “likes to talk”.

“She would be so distracted if she had it with her.”

Sophia Thumath, 12, was "gutted" about the phone ban while mum Marcella Thumath was in favour of it.

The college her daughters will be going to has allowed students to carry cellphones, but this might soon change under the new policy.

“They are really, really gutted. They’ve been pretty vocal since National announced it. They were like ‘don’t vote for National because they’re getting rid of cellphones.’ Kudos to them that they are actually interested.”

She said cellphones were “anti-social” and the policy would “force them to have a bit more contact face-to-face with their peers”.

As for some parents’ assertions they needed to be able to contact their children during school hours, Thumath said that was not necessary.

“You can call the school . . . they don’t need to contact me during the day. I’m working myself, so I don’t need that distraction.

Auckland girl Sophia Thumath already attends a school with a phone ban, but was looking forward to attending a college without a ban.

“They are under the school’s responsibility during school hours. If there’s anything important, the school should call.”

One of Thumath’s twin daughters, Sophia Thumath, said the ban was “kind of annoying”, and took away the option for kids to text their parents if they were having a hard time at school.

She said her friends “don’t like National”, particularly because of the phone ban.

Despite her protests pre-election though, she said the phone ban was a good idea.

“If you’re already on a device all day at school . . . it’s pretty anti-social.”

Hutt Valley secondary school teacher Olivia Hammond says cellphones don't belong in a classroom.

Hutt Valley secondary school teacher Olivia Hammond said she was in favour of having them banned from the classroom setting, as “I believe that cellphones have no place in the classroom”.

“Every school board has their own policy, and for most schools, phones are already banned from the classroom. However, this has not meant that phone use has not been an issue. Students can be defiant and dishonest about their phone use, so I am interested to see how this ban will be implemented, and what support will be in place for teachers.

“For some students, this will be an uncomfortable change, but a necessary one. For teachers, I am hopeful that this change will mean we have more engaged, and less distracted students.”

Top tips for those struggling to afford devices for school this year

Out go the phones but in come the tablets and laptops for many who don’t have them already.

Consumer NZ has recommended some families wanting a cost-efficient way to provide devices should look at buying “refurbished” ones.

Refurbished devices are ones that have been bought and returned to a store, inspected and put back up for sale.

“It’s like buying a five-year-old car from a secondhand dealer. You get a nearly new product with most of the same guarantees, but a chunk of the cost is wiped off,” Consumer NZ said.

The organisation warned parents there were a few things to be aware of it buying a refurbished device for school.

“It’s vital to check with your school which operating systems are permitted for BYOD. For example, if all the school’s software is built for Windows 10 and your child shows up with a refurbished MacBook, it’ll cause big problems.”

They also said it was worth making sure the device had a solid state drive (SSD) rather than the “much slower and more delicate” hard disk drive (HDD).

If buying tablets, parents should look for an iPad from the fifth generation or later. For laptops for older students, they should “shy away from anything old or under-powered”.

“A computer released more than three years ago could truly impact a student’s performance at this level. However, it can still be worth getting last year’s model at a bargain price.”

Consumer NZ also recommends laptops have a minimum built-in storage of 64GB, and said they will be unlikely to last for the full time your child is in school, so buy a device that will suit the student for the next two to four years.

Ministry of Education operations and integration leader Sean Teddy said it was important there were “no barriers to accessing education”.

“Students must not be excluded from participating in courses or more general curriculum activity if their family/whānau is unwilling or unable to provide their own BYOD [bring your own device],” Teddy said.

“Decisions about digital devices – including the choice of device, and when and how to implement technology in the classroom – are best made by boards in consultation with their communities- however we do have guidance for schools on digital devices.

“If parents have any concerns about a particular school’s requirements for devices, they should raise these with their school. Schools can support parents in a number of ways. Some schools buy class sets of devices, some schools are specific about the brand of device they want, others give a broad set of required specifications without specifying a brand. Many schools work with local trusts to establish affordable lease-to-buy arrangements.”

Melissa Nightingale is a Wellington-based reporter who covers crime, justice and news in the capital. She joined the Herald in 2016 and has worked as a journalist for 10 years.