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Brazil joins growing list of countries banning cellphones in schools

(1) A bill that bans students from using cellphones in schools was signed into law in Brazil on Monday, the latest example of lawmakers limiting young people’s use of personal technology in the classroom, amongst growing concern about its effect on education and wellbeing.

(2) Brazil’s Education Ministry said in a statement that the law “aims to safeguard the mental, physical and psychological health of children and adolescents.” The law prohibits all students in public and private elementary and secondary schools from using portable electronic devices throughout the school day, the ministry said, though it allows for their educational use and some other exceptions.

(3) Brazil joins several countries that have banned the personal use of cellphones in schools — including the Netherlands, Italy, and France — though there are questions as to whether phone bans are effective in achieving their aims.

(4) On the one hand, the U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) recommended in 2023 that smartphones only be allowed during class time for learning activities. “Even just having a mobile phone nearby with notifications coming through is enough to result in students losing their attention from the task at hand, ” it said in a statement.

(5) Despite the concern, an August (2024) global literature review by researchers at three universities in Queensland, Australia, found that there have been limited high-quality studies on the issue. “The evidence for banning mobile phones for the mental health and well-being of students is inconclusive and based only on anecdotes or perceptions, rather than the recorded incidence of mental illness, ” authors Marilyn Campbell, professor of early-childhood and inclusive education at the Queensland University of Technology. “Mobile phones are an integral part of our lives, ” they added. “We need to be teaching children about appropriate use of phones, rather than simply banning them.”

(Adapted from: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/01/14/brazil-cellphoneschool-ban/