Digital Citizenship Lessons Begin as UAE School Phone Ban Takes Effect

Schools across the UAE are introducing digital citizenship and wellbeing lessons as new restrictions on student mobile phones take effect with the start of the academic year.

A ministerial ruling bars students from bringing mobile phones into public schools and private schools following the Ministry of Education curriculum. Many other private schools are also requiring students to hand in their phones or keep them in secure storage during the school day.

The new approach is being paired with discussions around screen habits, social media, online safety, attention span and sleep, with the aim of encouraging more deliberate technology use among students.

Schools are also drawing a clearer line between personal smartphones and devices used for learning. At Diyafah International School in Abu Dhabi, for example, a Bring Your Own Device programme remains in place from Year 3, allowing supervised use of learning devices while personal phones are restricted.

School-issued laptops and tablets can similarly remain part of lessons where monitoring and controls are in place, keeping educational technology available without bringing personal messaging, notifications and social media into the school day.

Enforcement measures vary by school, with some institutions allowing phones to be confiscated for extended periods if students do not comply with the rules.

The rollout places digital wellbeing alongside the phone restrictions rather than treating the policy solely as a ban, with schools expected to address both day-to-day enforcement and students’ broader habits around technology.