The practice of sneaking in mobile phones and checking them during class or in between has gone up among students after two years of the pandemic, said teachers of several city schools.
Students have been caught taking selfies, carrying their phones in pockets to check updates when they are in washrooms or even checking their devices during class.
Some schools allow senior students in classes XI and XII to bring their phones to school because they go back home on their own and they need to be in touch with their parents.
But the rule in most schools is that they are supposed to deposit the phone at a designated place and collect it before leaving the premises.
Even before the pandemic, this rule was flouted now and then.
After the pandemic, the number of mobile phones confiscated during ‘random raids’ in schools has gone up.
“Even though they (classes XI and XII) are allowed to carry a phone, the students are finding it a challenge to stay away from the device for five hours,” said Anjana Saha, principal of Mahadevi Birla World Academy.
Saha said for more than two years, the students were used to a device. There was a time when classes were online but the parents had to go back to work.
“They had the liberty to use the phone at all times without any supervision. They are using it to stay connected on social media and constantly check for updates. If they do not stay updated, there is a fear of missing out,” she said.
Teachers said that even students in classes who are not allowed to carry a phone are doing so.
Discipline has suffered in the last two years and though children have returned to school they are yet to get used to the school decorum.
In one school, a group of senior students had gone to the washroom with their phones and had uploaded photos of them in school within class hours. In another, phones were confiscated after some students were seen clicking selfies.
Sometimes the phone rings during the class because the student has forgotten to put the device on silent mode or switch it off.
“They are so used to a phone now that they have forgotten how and where to use it,” said John Bagul, principal of South City International School.
The school conducts random checks where student counsel members check for anyone carrying a mobile that is not deposited at the designated place.
“When they are caught with the phone the students make an excuse that they could not find anyone to deposit,” said Amita Prasad, director of Indus Valley World School.
“Not so many of them would come with a phone to school earlier. We understand that they are carrying a phone because just when they are outside the school gate they would check their phone or even take photos,” said Madhumita Seal, vice-principal, BDM International.
