Students at schools in Greece will be required to keep cell phones inside their bags at all times during lessons, according to a new set of rules announced this week ahead of the 2024-2025 academic year which kicks off on Sept. 11.
The news comes after a meeting on Thursday between Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Education Minister Kyriakos Pierrakakis.
“We are calling on students, parents and teachers to support us in this effort. Mobile phones have no place in schools. You can bring phones to school, but they must remain in your bags throughout the school day,” said Mitsotakis.
The PM cited scientific data which proves that the use of mobile phones during school affects the learning process creating among others attention deficit and distraction.
This year’s slogan, he said, is “Cell Phones in the School Bag”, and this can “only affect the learning process positively”.
The PM also announced that 10,000 new teachers would be hired for permanent positions on top of 27,500 recruitments in 2019.
The two officials also discussed the inclusion of new technologies in schools across Greece. In this direction, the ministry has already equipped high schools with 28,500 smart writing boards set to reach 36,000 by the end of the year with the aim of making classes and learning more interactive.
Lastly, Mitsotakis referred to the impact of the Stop Bullying platform which he said is a tool for students and teachers to use in order to address such incidents. He went on to add that tougher measures and penalties will be taken in cases of delinquency.
