Manitoba weighing cellphone use in schools

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Manitoba will provide an update on student cellphone use in schools this week, fuelling speculation the province could follow Saskatchewan and restrict cellphones in classrooms.

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Manitoba is the only Western Canadian province without a plan to impose phone restrictions in classrooms. Saskatchewan’s kindergarten through grade 12 ban was announced last week.

“This is an issue because kids need to learn how to become critical digital citizens who are well informed and also know when they are going down a rabbit hole,” said Minister of Education and Early Childhood Learning Nello Altomare in a conversation with the Winnipeg Sun.

Altomare sidestepped a question about a potential classroom cellphone ban. Concerned residents must wait until later in the week for news — but there are no guarantees.

According to 2023 results from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) an exam of 15-year-olds in 38 countries — math and reading scores in Canada have dropped significantly since 2003.

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Results from the PISA, presented by the Fraser Institute, say 45% of students reported feeling anxious if their phones were not close by.

“In Canada, that percentage skyrockets to 80% during math instruction — higher than the average of 65%,” they wrote. “Moreover, 59% of students reported being distracted by others using digital devices in math class. These students who report being distracted scored 15 points lower on PISA math tests than those who don’t deal with this distraction.”

Students who spend five to seven hours per day on cellphones scored a massive 49 points lower on math tests than children who spent up to one hour per day, the Fraser Institute reported.

“Five to seven hours per day may seem like an unbelievable amount of time for kids to spend scrolling their screens, but according to research by Canadian charity Nature Canada, kids in grades seven to 12 spend up to seven hours per day on screens,” wrote the Fraser Institute.

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For Manitobans who think cellphones in classrooms are a learning crisis, Altomare said teachers are doing a good job, noting classroom distractions are an issue.

“It doesn’t have to just be a cellphone,” he said. “A distraction can be any other item. And absolutely teachers are aware of this, as are families. These devices are going to be with us. And at the end of the day, it’s not a footrace with other provinces.”

According to the Fraser Institute, American psychologist Jonathan Haidt has studied at length cellphones in classrooms — making the case for bans.

“Without a mature frontal cortex to fight the temptation of buzzing smartphone notifications, kids are particularly at risk of severe distraction,” the Fraser Institute wrote of Haidt’s ideas. “Even having a phone in their pocket negatively impacts the academic performance of teens.”

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Spruce Woods MLA and Progressive Conservative Education Critic Grant Jackson wants firm action from the province.

“The other day I was at the Hartney Hopper Days parade in a little town in southwest Manitoba, and I had people from the crowd shouting out at me as I drove by, ‘Get the cellphones out of classrooms, stick to your guns on this issue,’” Jackson told the Winnipeg Sun.

Manitoba Teachers Society (MTS) President Nathan Martindale said in a statement the debate around cellphones in classrooms is ongoing. Conversations are happening with teachers across Canada, and Manitoba, he said.

“There is no doubt that advancements in technology are important to explore and have a place in our public education system,” he said.

“MTS supports teachers and school divisions in their careful consideration of when and how these tools are used to the benefit of student education.”

Have thoughts on what’s going on in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada or across the world? Send us a letter to the editor at wpgsun.letters@kleinmedia.ca

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