Speaking on Newstalk Breakfast, Minister McEntee said the initiative will bring significant benefits to young people.
“This is about as far as possible protecting our young people. And as far as possible making sure that our schools are phone free zones,” she said.
“There will always be pockets of money that will be spent on different initiatives, on new initiatives and this is what’s happening here, reports Breaking News.
“This is specifically to try and support kids in school to make sure that when they’re in schools [that] they’re learning. And that’s what education is about, that’s what our schools are about. I do appreciate this is not a small amount of money but when we break this down and when we see the impact it’s already having in schools that have it, I believe this can be transformational,” reports Breaking News.
Minister McEntee said that a growing number of young people now have access to mobile phones.
“Children as early as seven or eight years of age getting mobile phones. Having social media accounts, bringing them into school and they really have become quite a distraction,” she said, reports Breaking News.
“They are impacting on their school life. What this is about is it’s about making sure in our primary schools that phones are banned and in our secondary schools, this is about restricting them. Acknowledging that children (there) are older. That we might have 17, 18 or even 19 year olds in schools,” reports Breaking News.
She added that restricting phone use at school is not a complete solution, saying what happens at home is equally important to the wellbeing of children.
“I don’t think this is a catch all. We do absolutely have an issue with children at home. We are not sure what they are accessing. But when they are at school the fact they are on their phones is distracting and taking away for what they are supposed to learn. At break time it is impacting on them engaging and interacting in social activities,” reports Breaking News.
“We still need those larger conversations. We need to talk to parents about when children are getting phones, how they are using their phones, how parents are engaging with children as well, and I think this is an opportunity that allows them to do that,” reports Breaking News.
Minister McEntee also appeared on Morning Ireland on RTÉ Radio 1 on Friday.
She clarified that it was “always the case” that funding could go toward various storage options in addition to phone pouches. She rejected claims by the Social Democrats that this represented a Government U-turn.
This followed Tánaiste Simon Harris’s comments indicating that the funding could be used for a range of storage solutions, including cubby holes and lockable boxes, rather than solely for pouches, reports Breaking News.
Under the new rules, primary schools must prohibit pupils from using or accessing mobile phones during school hours, while secondary schools must impose usage restrictions.
According to the Department of Education, the measures aim to improve student wellbeing, boost concentration during lessons, and reduce incidents of cyberbullying and exposure to harmful content, reports Breaking News.
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