Take disadvantage away from children, not their mobiles

You probably saw the news that an ESRI study found that children who owned phones at 9 scored 4 per cent less on average in reading and maths tests at 13 than their phoneless counterparts.

It grabs the attention. Are phones stunting our children’s development? Are we raising a generation of screen addicts? Should we ban children from owning mobiles?

These aren’t without merit but distract from a bigger issue. Children at “socially disadvantaged” schools are more likely to have mobiles, while children whose parents have higher incomes and higher levels of education are less likely to own one.