French students banned from using computers during lectures

[highplainsdem]

Source: The Times (UK)

Several French universities have banned the use of computers during lectures, forcing students to take handwritten notes, in the country’s latest move to limit the harmful effects of screens on young people.

The universities say they want to minimise distractions and encourage students to concentrate on their classes instead of scrolling through social media or shopping online.

-snip-

In other universities some lecturers have not waited for a general ruling from the faculty to ban screens from their classes. Julien Damon, who teaches at Sciences Po in Paris — the elite college whose alumni include many of France’s recent presidents, including Emmanuel Macron — said he enforced a no-computer rule.

-snip-

Damon said that barring computers and mobile phones from classes offered a beneficial “digital detox” for students. “A lot of students give me positive feedback on this,” he said. “In their ultra-connected lives, my two hours of class give them a break and a chance to anchor themselves in reality.”

-snip-

Read more: https://www.thetimes.com/world/europe/article/french-students-banned-from-using-computers-during-lectures-ncs8j6z8q

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Good for them.

Good for every teacher and administrator everywhere fighting AI companies and smartphones undermining education.

[walkingman]

1. I think it would be a positive thing for America - our education system has

Last edited Wed Jun 18, 2025, 02:38 PM - Edit history (1)

Become more about money than education - time to reverse that. Teach our real history, hold students accountable, get government out of the classroom.

[Basso8vb]

2. Blue Books will be making a huge comeback.

[riversedge]

5. Those were the test books where I went to school.

[FirstLight]

3. Right? Note taking is a lost skill!!!!

I also think that notes should be allowed during tests. Because tests are not supposed to be about memorization but understanding how to compile data and no what to write down and what's important. Those critical thinking skills cannot be duplicated online and AI is something I can't even talk about when it comes to education it pisses me off. And I'd love to see this happen in all schools not just universities

[mike_c]

8. agree about the notes

I gave lots of take home exams, for which I assumed students would use their text, notes, and whatever other resources they could find. I explicitly allowed that-- I couldn't have stopped them if I'd wanted to, so I just rolled with it. It gave me the freedom to ask hard, synthetic questions and to skip the regurgitation stuff altogether. They had to think about the answers to hard questions, and to assess the quality of information they found online, etc. I'm real happy when undergrads can perform that way.

[LiberalArkie]

4. I remember before personal computers, some students would use portable typewriters in lectures

[maxsolomon]

9. LOL, I never saw that in college or grad school.

I'd have complained mightily about the noise.

[LiberalArkie]

11. Wasn't that many, mainly those that had lousy handwriting but were greased lightning on the little typewriters.

I think they were doing kind of like stenographers. I can't remember much as it was almost 60 years ago.

[mike_c]

6. when I began teaching 30 years ago...

...few students had personal computers and smart phones were still a gleam in Dick Tracy's eye. When I first noticed significant numbers of laptops in lecture halls I assumed students used them to follow along and annotate my lecture notes. Then one day I sat in the back where I could see their screens. If it was up to me I'd block cell phone and internet access inside classrooms.

[berniesandersmittens]

7. Cornell note taking was the only way I got through school

This is a good thing.

[maxsolomon]

10. Notetaking on a tablet or laptop is perfectly fine.

And most current students use that method - I still take handwritten notes at meetings but it seems kind of dumb since I have to type them into minutes anyway.