Back to school means closer look at youth smartphone use

As educators try to wean students from using personal mobile devices, here's a deep dive into Ontario's cellphone ban in schools

Published Sep 06, 2026  •  Last updated 5 minutes ago  •  4 minute read

Children are pictured using their cellphones in a stock photo. Getty Images/iStockphoto

See more Toronto Sun on Google — save as a Preferred Source 

Article content

Heading into the new school year, students in some schools across Canada may face new rules regarding cellphone use in classrooms.

Article content

Article content

Most recently, New Brunswick updated its cellphones and personal mobile devices policy to ban their use in all classrooms, starting with students in kindergarten to Grade 8 at the beginning of the school year, then introducing the restriction for high schoolers on Feb. 1, 2027.

The policy update in the Maritime province brings it in line with other provinces that have similar restrictions on cellphone use in schools — though Quebec is still the only province in Canada with a blanket ban on such devices during the entire school day for all grades. Most other provinces prohibit their use during class time.

With the school year starting for most students this week, here’s a review of where Ontario stands on cellphone use in schools, whether the ban is effectively enforced, and what further actions are recommended.

Since 2019, the Ontario government has implemented cellphone restrictions in schools. But it updated its policy in 2024, banning students in kindergarten to Grade 6 from using mobile devices during the entire school day, while students in Grades 7 to 12 can’t use them during class time.

Article content

Article content

Not everyone is following the rules

However, just because province-wide rules are in place doesn’t mean every educator has followed the same approach to handling the ban in local school districts.

According to a recent report by The Conversation, compliance with the rules was mixed among teachers at the Toronto District School Board.

The report, based on a survey of just over 1,200 TDSB teachers, found that 70% of elementary school teachers said cellphone restrictions were “consistently enforced at their school,” while less than half (44%) of secondary teachers said the rules were consistently enforced.

A majority (75%) of elementary school teachers noted that their students were less distracted by their phones, and 73% said students were more focused on learning.

For secondary school teachers, only about a third of them said the same thing about their students’ behaviour, though the “minority” of teachers in schools where rules were consistently enforced reported the same benefits.

Article content

Just over half (51%) of high school teachers reported having “a lot” of difficulty enforcing the ban, while a quarter (25%) of elementary teachers reported the same.

Why the discrepancy between high school and elementary teachers? The Conversation reported that it mainly has to do with teachers not feeling supported by parents and school administrators.

Social media ban eyed

Following the shooting at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School in February, several provinces and the federal government are looking at taking restrictions on personal mobile device even further, eyeing regulations over social media use for youths.

The 18-year-old shooter in the B.C. tragedy had discussed gun violence with artificial intelligence chatbot ChatGPT before she fatally shot eight people, including six at her school.

Back in April, Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew announced the province was working on legislation banning youths aged 16 and under from using social media and AI chatbots.

Article content

Shortly after, Ontario’s Education Minister Paul Calandra also expressed interest in regulating social media use in schools. He also said the province was considering an outright ban on cellphones in schools.

“I think the evidence is becoming more and more clear that cellphone use in our schools — elementary and our secondary schools — anywhere on site, has become a problem,” Calandra told reporters during a news conference in late April.

Calandra said the province was going to work closely with the federal government on a social media ban for children under a certain age.

Bell-to-bell ban urged for all Ontario students

Meanwhile, parents’ groups are pushing the Ontario government for quicker action on a total ban of cellphones in schools as the current rules allow students in Grade 7 and up to use them outside of class time and when permitted by educator.

In June, the Phone-Free Schools Movement was part of a news conference at Queen’s Park calling for a so-called “bell-to-bell” ban on cellphones, requiring all students to leave the devices in bags or lockers for the entire school day.

Article content

“Constant (online) connection deprives adolescents of the real-world practice they need to develop memory, independent problem-solving, and self-control,” Phone-Free Schools Movement executive director Angie Clark said, per the London Free Press.

“There is also an issue of student safety because group chats and social media allow peer conflicts and digital harassment to escalate and disrupt the school environment, drawing focus away from learning,” she said.

“This is not an anti-technology stance. It is a pro-childhood stance,” she added.

Read More

1. 

   STOSSEL: Are smartphones the new cause of social panic?
2. 

   New Zealand moves to ban social media for under-16s

3. 

   Australia teen social media ban has little impact, researchers say

Article content