Tokyo, Jan 30: Students across Japan now have
fewer chances of pulling out their mobile handsets at school as the government ban on cellphone use is penetrating deeper among the country`s public schools, an education ministry survey said on Friday.
Mobile phone use by students is totally or partially
banned at 20,527 elementary schools, or 94 percent of the
schools surveyed, and 9,936 junior highs, or 99 percent,
according to the first-ever nationwide poll of its kind
conducted by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports,
Science and Technology.
Of the total, 11,636 elementary schools, or 57 per
cent, and 5,105 junior highs, or 51 percent, allow students
to use a limited range of functions such as simple phone calls
based on parents` requests.
The survey found high school students have generally
received lenient bans, with 20 percent, or 887 schools,
saying they fully or partially restrict cellphone use.
Moves to prohibit students` mobile phone use have
spread widely since the administration of then Prime Minister
Shinzo Abe prioritised the issue during his one-year tenure
from September 2006 amid an increase in the number of cyber
crimes against children.
Concerned that "cyberbullying" is becoming rampant,
the ministry also demanded that municipalities move forward
with efforts to foster moral development of students over how
to handle cyber information and to set guidelines for Internet
and cellphone use at home.
"Imposing bans at school does not mean that there are
fewer victims of bullying or crimes, and what we expect is
that (local authorities) will press ahead with measures to
protect children," a ministry official said.
Bureau Report
