Device management goes to school

Management of mobile devices is a huge issues in schools this fall.

Some schools have banned smartphones, laptops and all personal technology, choosing instead to give students “tech breaks.”

Other teachers are using a system which shuts down smartphones. Compliance is digitally tracked by the teacher and punished with grade deductions.

This attention to curbing device usage has roots in research: data shows that multitasking is a myth. When our brain focuses on one thing, it shuts down something else. This rapid attention-switching can result in lower grades, which is the reason educators are rethinking their previous, lenient approach to digital devices.