Families of students at the Michelangelo Scientific High School in Cagliari must pay €15 for the purchase of cell phone storage units . The deadline is November 15th. Failure to pay will result in no smartphones being allowed at school. This was expected until approximately 1:00 PM today, November 5th. Then something happened. And shortly thereafter, a countermand arrived: don't pay until further notice.
All in one morning and all reported in two circulars, the second a rectification of the first, signed by the school principal Raffaele Rossi.
The controversy among parents at the Cagliari science institute erupted when a notification of the publication of a new order signed by the principal arrived on the electronic register . The subject line was: "Contribution to purchase cell phone lockers."
"Since it is necessary to purchase the lockers in question, in accordance with current legislation, which requires a fee of €15 per student," the statement read, "parents are asked to pay this fee by Saturday, November 15th, once they have received the relevant notice. Payment is not due simply upon notification that your children will be attending school without their cell phones."
The regulatory reference is to the provisions adopted by Education Minister Giuseppa Valditara. The government representative's circular also dates back to last June: it established "a ban on cell phone use during teaching activities and more generally during school hours for secondary school students . This measure," the provision continued, "now appears urgent in light of the negative effects, amply demonstrated by scientific research, that excessive or inappropriate smartphone use can have on the health and well-being of adolescents and on their academic performance."
Each principal, in full school autonomy, can decide how to implement the ministerial circular. Reading the text signed by Valditara, there is no reference to families' obligation to pay money.
An attempt to ask Raffaele Rossi, the Michelangelo's guide, for clarification was in vain: "It's surprising that information is being requested in this way," he replied over the phone. "They're just implementing a ministerial circular. Goodbye." He hung up the phone while another question was being asked, and the conversation ended.
But not those with students' families. Because within half an hour, the electronic register notifications come back to life. A new circular: following the previous one , "Parents are asked not to make the requested payment voluntarily until further notice."
The reverse gear is done.
"The Ministry's circular," explains Massimo De Pau, president of the National Principals' Association, without wanting to delve into the merits of the Michelangelo case, "does not prohibit students from possessing cell phones, but rather from using them. Each principal adopts the implementation methods they deem most appropriate, through internal regulations. Failure to comply with the directive can result in disciplinary procedures: from a warning to suspension, which is no longer the same as it once was but involves a 'citizenship' process."
Most managers adopt this approach. There's been little or no mention of safe deposit boxes for families to use. And, looking online, you can find them for just over €30, with dozens of compartments.
Enrico Fresu