Canberra's classroom mobile phone ban is long overdue

Every other state, along with the Northern Territory, has already rolled out mandatory bans in recognition of the disruptive influence smart phones have in a school environment.

In addition to being unnecessary distractions when students should be focussing on the task at hand, smart phones linked to social media accounts and messaging apps enable cyber bullying and intimidation in what should be a safe environment.

The ACT ban does appear to have been well thought through and is tiered according to the age and perceived maturity of the students.

There is a total ban on the use of phones during the school day or at school events from kindergarten to year 10. Once students enter years 11 and 12 they will need to put their phones on silent - and away - during class. They will be allowed to use their phones during classroom breaks.

The decision to give principals the discretion to provide exemptions for students with special health needs or family caring responsibilities is eminently sensible.

No two individuals or families are the same. It would not be wise to mandate a "one size fits all" approach that could have unintended consequences.

That said, special privileges would need to be monitored and, if abused, be managed or withdrawn. The importance of this issue was underscored by the strong public response to a call for public submissions as part of the consultation process.

Education Minister Yvette Berry said more than 3200 submissions had been received. The majority of those appear to have favoured a ban given the Minister said there had been "strong and consistent support for the removal or minimisation student mobile phone use in ACT public schools".

The adoption of the ban is also to be welcomed given it brings to an end a period of confusion created by the former policy of leaving decisions on phone use up to individual schools.

Both Harrison School and Evelyn Scott School had already restricted phone use and invested in lockable pouches for students to store their phones in during the day.

The ACT school phone ban is also timely given the recent release of Program for International Student Assessment results that show Australia has been declining over time.

While the ACT was ahead of all other jurisdictions this year, once socio-economic advantage was factored in many national proficiency standards were not being met.

Singapore, the country that consistently tops the PISA scorecard, has taken a tough line on mobile phone use for years.

Many schools in the city-state have banned phones altogether while others impose strict conditions on their use.

It is not uncommon for schools to confiscate phones for months at a time or even for a year.

Singapore's Ministry of Education clearly believes there is a clear correlation between phone use and academic standards.

That appears to be evidence based given Singapore regularly tops the PISA scores for mathematics, science and reading.

Australia comes in 10^th in the science category and is well outside the top 10 for both mathematics and literacy.

While banning - or severely restricting - mobile phone use in schools is not necessarily going to be a magic bullet there is good reason to hope that it will make classrooms and playgrounds happier and safer places.

If, in addition, it results in a lift in academic standards that would be a welcome bonus.

Watch this space.