Austria’s Minister of Education, Christoph Wiedercker, has announced a ban on the use of mobile phones in primary and secondary schools.
This decision, reported by APA, reverses the previous practice where each educational institution decided individually whether to ban phones. The new law mandates a strict prohibition on the use of mobile devices during both lessons and breaks.
The ban applies to primary and secondary education (the first eight grades) and will be formalized by an Austrian Ministry of Education decree by the end of March. Schools can decide for themselves where to store mobile phones, smartwatches, and other devices. If the ban is violated, students will face sanctions such as a note in the school register or a call to their parents.
Similar measures are being discussed or already implemented in other European countries. For example, in Latvia, the use of mobile phones has been banned for students in grades 1-6. In France, as part of a pilot project starting in January 2025, primary and lower secondary school students will have to leave their smartphones in lockers upon entering the school. In the Netherlands, phones are also banned in middle and lower schools, although students may use them for educational purposes.
