«Mbut, I want to become independent from the mobile phone, help me…”. The 50-year-old Marina looked surprised at her teenage son who, very serious, entering the house from school, put his bag down and turned his hand towards her side. 15-year-old Nikos was holding his cell phone. His screen is dead. “It’s off battery,” he told her, “I don’t want to charge it.” You will keep it and give it to me whenever I ask for it.” He had decided to stay a few days without a mobile phone. To test his strength. To see how long he can last without games and social media.
«The truth is, of course, that I am not one of those kids who spend endless hours on the Internetsays Nikos himself in “Vima” and describing the scene of his conversation with his mother. “And when I’m using it, I’m usually not playing games or hanging out on Instagram. However, I wanted to do some sort of detox, if only for a few days». He finally had enough. It was summer, after 4 days he opened his cell phone again to check if his friends are looking for him. In the end, things were much easier than he thought. “There is life without a mobile phone! And it’s nicehe says today.
Isolation and deprivation
But what is behind the emotional dependence of millions of young people around the world today on their mobile phones? The idea that they belong to a whole, a group, that they constantly interact with its members? More the idea that they have common interests and recruiters, experts say. In the end, of course, as they explain, they achieve the exact opposite: they isolate themselves and instead of the colorful ensemble, they immerse themselves in a hazy world of their own.
According to the book “The anxious generation” of the social psychologist Jonathan Hyde which sounded the global alarm on the subject “companies have done little – if any – research into the mental health effects of their products on children and teenagers before they put them on the market». Consequently, as the book points out: “There are four fundamental “harms” caused by the new phone-based childhood: social deprivation, sleep deprivation, fragmented attention, and addiction».
As 15-year-old Nikos says: “We lose the moment. And I don’t mean that we lose the delivery of the lesson in the classroom, but the good times. A nice quip in the classroom or a funny incident in the yard».
The resourceful… offenders
This year, the new school year started with bans. Mobile phones are prohibited during school hours both in the forecourts and in the classrooms. Unruly students will be punished with suspension from 1 to 5 days. Even with a change of school environment, in case they record and post a video with a classmate or teacher. In fact, the first abortions have already taken place.
But is the new measure being followed? A group of students outside the Kallithea High School are studying earlier. They take out of the bag and turn on their cell phones. THE Peter explains the process: “When entering the school, we turn off our cell phones and put them in the principal’s box. Some children, if there is a medical reason, can open them during the break to communicate with their relatives. But normally we get them in school». «And all the students follow it?” I ask them. The children look at each other and snicker. The truth is – as they will later reveal to me – that children devise the most imaginative ways to hide cell phones from teachers and take them to class with them. Students reveal some of the more “popular” tricks, such as inside the case, between the pages of the books or under the desk. Specifically, as she says Mary: «If you have a lot of books under the desk, the cell phone is out of sight and you can sneak peeks when the professor isn’t looking at you.”. «The high school kids also put them in the pots so they can see them during the break» adds o George. From what I understand, at least in the beginning, the professors are strict in words but not in practice. That is, they make strict recommendations for the use of mobile phones, however at this stage of adaptation they are more lenient with punishments. “A classmate took out his cell phone during class. We saw him but didn’t say anything to the teacher because he is our friendsays the Angelica. «She didn’t see him or turned a blind eye?” I ask her. “I think he didn’t see him because he is sitting at the last desk and two tall guys are sitting in front of himhe answers me.
Of course, by scrolling through Tik Tok, one finds that hundreds of videos have already been posted in the last few days from school classrooms and yards. However, the students agree that the measure is in the right direction since the children themselves admit that the mobile phone distracts them from the delivery of lessons, reading and other activities. How many hours do students spend on the Internet? “Often 14 hours”, “7 hours”, “5 hours”… These are the answers they give themselves. On the other hand, the ministry’s ban has, in fact, freed the hands of teachers who have been unable to teach for the last few years.
As the Physics teacher jokingly says Eleni Spyrou «we now enter the classroom and have to compete with a strong opponent, these “digital demons”». This is a generation that grew up with mobile phones, unlike the previous one. “The digital world is their world” says Mrs. Spyrou, “we go to great lengths to gain their attention and interest. The challenge is great. Luckily, when we get into the lab and the lesson gets a little more interactive, they step out of their digital world for a bit and into ours». As the professors argue, the children’s parents should also be helpful in this effort, as the consequences of reckless use are multi-layered.
However, the Nikiforos Konstantinoua member of OLME, puts another parameter in our conversation, that of reward. “The measure is in the right direction” he says. “Certain prohibitions have always existed, but now the penalties have also been added. We, as educators, believe that punishments should be combined with rewards. That is, a week without a cell phone could have a reward for the classroom or school. In the educational process along with punishments always come rewards» he concludes.
What applies to mobile phones – Prohibitions in Europe too
The ban on mobile phones in schools may be an unprecedented measure for Greece, but it has been in place for years in many European countries. In Great Britain mobile phones are banned, however the penalty is determined by school principals depending on the situation. Portugal is doing something innovative. It allows cell phones on certain days of the week so that students can see for themselves how bad phone use is for their concentration and realize for themselves the importance of not using it in class. In Belgium, Germany, Italy, Spain, Ireland and Finland, smartphones are banned, as are all digital devices, unless they are used in groups for educational purposes. The ban is part of the fight against fatigue, isolation and violence, since in many countries there were dozens of bullying cases every day from offensive videos recorded and posted by school classes.
At the same time, students have developed their own digital communities worldwide to support each other without borders. These are chat groups on the Internet, usually related to games or online activities, where older students support younger ones, even if they live in different countries. More experienced students explain the pros and cons of the internet, benefits and consequences. Some, having passed through the stage of addiction, can now and do give advice to prevent or get other children out of this situation.
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