Spending €9 million on ‘smartphone pouches’ for children will improve their academic results, Norma Foley has predicted. 

As part of Budget 2025, the Department of Education has announced that schools will be given funding to build storage units for children to put their phones in during the school day. 

The funding has come in for criticism as a “slightly excessive” sum but Education Minister Norma Foley told The Hard Shoulder there is a “very strong explanation” for her decision. 

“In the first instance, if you look at all of the research - both national and international - it’s very, very clearly telling us that young people, their learning is being significantly impeded,” she said. 

“Their socialisation, their ability to chat with one another - even in a school setting.

“They’re constantly on their phones during break from class.” 

A teenager using a mobile phone. Image: David Burton / Alamy Stock Photo

Some schools have already introduced their own smartphone bans and Minister Foley said it is important that no child has their education interrupted by a phone. 

“UNESCO has told us that for the entire school day, there should be a ban on phones,” she said. 

“They said, for example, when a student is interrupted with a beep or a message coming through on their phone, it takes them 20 minutes to re-engage with the learning that’s happening in the classroom. 

“[There’s] also cyberbullying and the need for a mental health break from the phones.

“So, what we’re seeking here is that our phones would be a phone free zone.” 

'An enormous number of parents' 

Minister Foley praised schools for “doing their best” but said staff “don’t have the time” to keep policing it. 

“All the evidence tells us, whether it’s in Belgium or Spain, the education outcomes improved when phones were banned in schools,” she said. 

“And I have to say, the issue of mobile phones is raised with me by an enormous number of parents.” 

A recent survey of 10,000 parents found that a majority wished they had waited longer before giving their child a smartphone.

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Main image: Norma Foley. Picture by: RollingNews.