Child and youth advocate suggests cellphone ban across N.B. schools

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New Brunswick’s child and youth advocate says it’s time to consider a cellphone ban for public schools across the province amid a “significant spike” in mental health cases over the last five years.

Advocate Kelly Lamrock pointed the finger at social media giants for the deteriorating mental health of children during his appearance before a legislative committee Thursday. He called on the federal government to regulate social media algorithms drawing children and young people down into “extremist rabbit holes.”

“How many children today are processing really terrifying and worrisome world events sitting up at 2 a.m. with the phone in their hand?” said Lamrock, who is a former education minister.

“They see tons of conflict and very little arbitration and explanation.”

In the last five years, the number of New Brunswick children seeking urgent medical care for depression, anxiety and suicidal ideation has climbed between 28 and 40 per cent, Lamrock told the Standing Committee on Procedure, Privileges and Legislative Officers.

He attributed the spike in part to social media, where children are often exposed to an onslaught of “bad news” without parental supervision or discussion. He said the form of communication itself encourages “conflict rather than resolution.”

“I do think it is time for us to start saying, ‘Look, maybe schools should be cellphone-free zones,’” said Lamrock, who also teaches at St. Thomas University.

“I’m even noticing in classes that I teach, or sometimes as a volunteer debate coach, the ability to make longer arguments is diminishing greatly among young people.”

Quebec recently banned cellphones in its elementary and high school classrooms in line with Ontario. In a directive sent out to schools in the fall, Quebec Education Minister Bernard Drainville cited the need to prioritize students’ academic success and well-being as the rationale for the provincewide ban.

Some New Brunswick schools – including Saint John High School and Tobique Valley High School – already require their students to put away their cellphones while in class.

New Brunswick’s education department does have an information and communication technologies policy, but it puts the onus on schools to develop their own guidelines for the “appropriate use” of cellphones.

“The department recognizes that as a society acclimatizes to more technologies and increased connectivity, the school system must foster the development of good ethics and cyber citizenship of students and school personnel regarding the use of technology,” department spokesperson Diana Chávez said in an email Thursday.

Government has ‘role to play’: Shephard

Progressive Conservative MLA Dorothy Shephard told Lamrock she was pleased to see he raised the issue of social media and asked for his advice on regulation.

“I do believe government has a role to play in social media to an extent, especially when it comes to the protection of children,” said Shephard, who sits on the all-party committee.

Lamrock later told media he’d like to see the feds regulate algorithms to ensure there are social media “timeouts” and a diversity of viewpoints.

“It’s really interesting to me that in TikTok you can literally wind up getting fed constant recommendations to watch people talking about their dead dog,” he said.

“That’s not good for your mental health, but of course there’s also no substitute for the adults in kids’ lives here in New Brunswick doing things – parents need to monitor screen time.”

As for the provincial government’s role, Lamrock said digital media literacy should be taught at a young age to students in the public school system. He also suggested there should be a “thoughtful dialogue about the role of cellphones and social media in schools.”

He told media he’d be prepared to sit down and “write the right legal mechanism” if the education department or particular school districts wanted to put a cellphone ban in place.

Liberal MLA and committee member Marco LeBlanc wants to see a study on the impact of cell phone usage on New Brunswick students before he weighs in on a possible ban.

“At the end of the day, disinformation, or misinformation, exists online,” he told media. “We need to be careful about what the kids are seeing and where they’re getting their information on social media.”

Green party Leader David Coon met with youth mental health experts in the Fredericton region about the rise in student mental health cases.

“You know what they said?” he said. “They said more than anything else that is driving this is the amount of time spent on screens and social media.

“Something needs to be done during the school day – the class time – to limit use of devices.”