A recent decision by the Ministry of Education to allow students to use mobile phones while at school has been met with skepticism , with parents and teachers alike questioning the rationale behind the move.

The ministry says it has not given students the green light to use cell phones within their school premises just as they would outside school but argues it was counterproductive in this day and age to maintain a blanket ban on students accessing the gadgets.

In a recent statement the ministry said it had instructed Parents Teachers Associations (PTAs) to revise school internal rules and regulations so that "students can use mobile phones appropriately without disturbing their colleagues, their studies and other school schedules in case they brought them to school”.

Olivier Rwamukwaya, the Minister of State for Primary and Secondary Education, on July 31 became the first senior official to publicly encourage schools to allow students to use mobile phones in a controlled manner.

But he said this should be done in "such a way that phones cannot negatively affect their studies”.

But school administrators, teachers and parents say even limited and controlled usage was uncalled for since cellular phones were likely to distract students and breed other social vices among students.

François Munyurangabo, the president of the parents-teachers’association at Groupe Scolaire Officiel de Butare (Indatwa n’Inkesha School) in Huye, said mobile phones among students would compromise the quality of education.

"All we want is an education system that imparts knowledge, skills and discipline, which can impact society and make the learner competitive in the world, he said.

He added: "Yes, mobile phones could probably benefit students but it would be difficult to avoid abuse and I don’t think any parent will be happy with that.”

Fear of abuse

Assumpta Tuyishimire, the discipline master at GS Rugando, Gasabo District, said there was no need for students to be allowed to use personal phones while at school since schools facilitate students to communicate with parents whenever necessary.

"In fact we have been grabbing phones from students. Secondary school students are teenagers and are more likely to use mobile phones for entertainment more than educational and other constructive purposes. I remember one day I found a schoolgirl watching pornography on her phone,” she said.

Besides, she added, students are from different social classes and are likely to be tempted to indulge in immoral behavior to outdo each other on trendy phones. "For instance, if a student from a rich family reports to school with a smart phone it might tempt those from poorer families to do whatever they can to own a similar phone. This could push them into theft and prostitution.”

The ministry’s move is a surprise departure from the previous strict ‘no-phone-at-school’ policy, most infamously demonstrated by Rwamukwaya’s predecessor, Mathias Harebamungu, who was photographed using a hoe to smash phones that had been seized from students at GS Zaza in Ngoma in 2010.

Teachers at the GS Zaza declined to comment on the latest development for fear of being misunderstood.

But Tuyishimire wondered how school administrators could best manage cell phones if many students owned them.

"It can create conflict in case phones get stolen or lost due to a mix-up. If the Ministry of Education’s intention is to promote the use of technology in schools, they can achieve that by increasing the number of computers and improving internet connection in schools,” Tuyishimire said.

The rector of Petit Séminaire Virgo Fidelis in Huye, Father Noël Mungwarareba, said the use of mobile phones in schools was a complex issue that needed thorough examination.

It is difficult to know what the student is going to use the phone for, he said.

While acknowledging that mobile phones in schools could prove beneficial, they could prove costly morally, especially since most students are minors.

"A student comes to school to study and it’s not as if they never get a chance to speak to their parents and family, every school has a visiting day,” he added.

‘Increase computers instead’

Diogene Bazimaziki, the head teacher of Groupe Scolaire Nkurura in Musanze District, expressed concerns that if the rules are relaxed to allow phones in school, most students will end up acquiring and bring the gadgets to school, thus creating a chaotic situation.

"It would require putting identification tags on every phone and that’s tedious and difficult to manage,” he said. "It would also be difficult to ensure discipline among students. I don’t see what we lose by maintaining the status quo and instead increase computer labs,” he added.

Luke Karimagingo, the head teacher, Gahini High School in Kayonza District, said mobile phones are a distraction for students and have no place in school.

"You don’t want to have students who are physically present in class but who are only busy playing games or chatting via social media,” he said.

"For teenagers, a mobile phone is a symbol of status…its cool when their phone rings in the middle of a lesson, they would rather send text messages to friends in the next classroom than concentrate in class, these are distractions we cannot afford,” he added.

Jean de Dieu Sebwage, the head teacher of Rusumo High School in Kirehe District, said: "A student with a cell phone is an uninterested student, they care more about interacting with friends through their phones instead of learning,” he said.

"We have previously tried to expel students who regularly used phones in class but the district authorities intervened and we had to allow the students back,” he said.

Elie Nsanzumuremyi, a PTA representative at Groupe Scolaire Kiyonza in Kamonyi District, said high school students are still too young to own mobile phones. "Students should always prioritise their education is their first priority. They can always use phones during the holidays but they don’t need them at school”.

He also said that allowing phones in school would see more students watching pornographic videos at school. "That would affect their performance.”

The head teacher of Groupe Scolaire Rugando in Kigali’s Gasabo District said students can always use public telephones to communicate with their parents and relatives as opposed to allowing them to carry personal cellular phones.

Gafunga Nzabanita, the head master of EAV Bigogwe in Nyabihu District, said mobile phones would breed indiscipline among students. "There is no justification for allowing students to own mobile phones while at school because we always help them to communicate with their parents whenever necessary,” Nzabanita said.

Jean Claude Nsanzineza, a teacher at Groupe Scolaire Nyumba in Huye District,said students unable to have nice mobile phones could be lured into risky habits to afford them and airtime.

Laurence Umwiza, a parent in Kibagabaga, a Kigali suburb, said students are not businesspersons to be allowed to use personal phones while at school.

"They go to school to learn,” Umwiza said.

She instead advised schools to avail and increase the number of public phones that students can use.

Christian Shema, an ICT teacher at Kigali Christian School in Kibagabaga, said due to technological advancement mobile phones can help students to do research.

However, he admits they can be abused by teens.

Students’ views

Eric Bikorimana, a student at APADE Lycee de Kicukiro, said mobile phones would positively impact on the learning process . "Obviously mobile phone can be useful to students when used properly. I don’t think it can be a source of indiscipline; it depends on student’s upbringing”.

He said, "We are in the age of technology, mobile phones can help students to do research faster. In life, anything can have negative effects if used wrongly”.

Bikorimana added that the move would also bring to an end the trend of students using phones discreetly which he said is more dangerous.

Aline Uwayezu, another student, said that if schools increased internal security measures, mobile phones wouldn’t cause any threat.

Callixte Ndayisenga, a student from GS Rugando, said access to mobile phones at school could end up making students lazy since they would heavily rely on the internet for almost everything, including using search engine Google for simple tasks, which may in turn affect their performance.

Reporting by Frederic Byumvuhore, Stephen Rwembeho & Emmanuel Ntirenganya

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