Three Ireland has partnered with Blackout Education to pilot an innovative app aiming to reduce smartphone distraction in schools. The app restricts student access to non-essential smartphone functions during school hours, while maintaining access to essential communications in the event of an emergency. Longford and Westmeath Education and Training Board (LWETB) is currently participating in the pilot initiative.
“Parents, teachers and school leaders are increasingly concerned about the impact smartphone distraction can have on students’ learning, focus and wellbeing,” says Nicola Mortimer, Three Ireland chief strategy and new product officer. “At Three, our purpose is to simplify how people connect, work and live, and this pilot reflects our ambition to help power people’s everyday lives in ways that are simpler, safer and smarter. Through this partnership, we hope to support schools in creating more focused learning environments, promote student wellbeing, and contribute valuable evidence to inform future approaches to smartphone use in education.”
The technology restricts access to non-essential smartphone functions, including social media, internet browsing, gaming and smartphone cameras, while maintaining access to essential communications, Mortimer adds. “The programme aims to support students’ concentration, engagement and wellbeing throughout the school day.”
Unlike approaches that require students to surrender their devices, the pilot allows students to retain possession of their phones during school hours. While access to non-essential smartphone functions is restricted, students can continue to make and receive voice calls and send text messages for essential communications, including in emergency situations. By removing the need to collect, store and return devices throughout the day, the programme also offers schools a practical and easy-to-manage solution that supports more focused learning environments.
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“It’s an app downloaded to phone with consent of parent,” Mortimer explains. “The app uses core functionality of phone to block everything except calls, texts, maps and the wallet. It uses the phone’s operating system and doesn’t read any data or access any other apps on the phone – it just stops them from working. It’s fully GDPR-compliant. Interestingly, the camera is a key thing people want to see blocked because it can be used in ways they don’t like in a school environment.”
Technology provider Blackout Education is backed by a number of investors, including former Ireland rugby captain Johnny Sexton, who has joined the initiative as campaign ambassador. This is the first time the technology has been used in Irish schools, having already been introduced in schools in England, Scotland, New Zealand and Guernsey. The company expects to be live in four more countries by the end of the year.
Experience from other markets has been encouraging, with schools reporting positive engagement with the programme, and benefits including more focused learning environments, according to Mark Hadley, chief executive of Blackout Education.
“We are delighted to partner with Three Ireland to bring this technology to Irish schools for the first time,” he adds. “Around the world, educators and parents are looking for practical ways to reduce smartphone distraction while maintaining essential connectivity. This pilot offers a simple, effective and collaborative approach that supports students, educators and families alike. We look forward to working closely with participating schools and contributing to a meaningful evidence base around the positive impact that more focused learning environments can have on student outcomes and wellbeing.”
‘At the end of the school year, we’ll prepare a full report on the experience of the schools, students and parents. We will ask if it worked for the stakeholders; did it provide a better environment?’
— Nicola Mortimer, Three Ireland
The technology is simple to operate for schools, according to Mortimer. “There is very little administration to it and it is very simple for the school to use,” she says. “The school sets the times for the app and can set half-days and so on in the administration console. A student can make an in-app request to unblock their phone. They are asked for a reason, and the school is notified as soon as a phone is unblocked. Also, if a child is at home sick for the day or not in school for any other valid reason, their phone can be unblocked.”
The benefits extend beyond education, she points out. “It also enhances the social experience of school. Socialising with fellow students during lunch breaks and other free time is very important, but if your head is stuck in the phone, you are not going to get that experience.”
The pilot programme will be used to gather evidence on the technology’s effectiveness, she adds. “We want to see if it solves a problem. By January we will be able to look at a number of months of use and compile preliminary findings. At the end of the school year, we’ll prepare a full report on the experience of the schools, students and parents. We will ask if it worked for the stakeholders; did it provide a better environment? Did grades go up? We will share all the results with the schools. The plan for this is to see if it is the right solution, and we will look at how it can be rolled out nationwide depending on the results.”
