Schools under the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) introduced new measures to control mobile phone use on the first day of the new semester on Monday.

Students now have to to leave their mobile phones with teachers during school hours to help them focus on learning, create a more effective classroom environment and reduce the health and behavioural impacts associated with excessive screen time. 

Bangkok governor Chadchart Sittipunt visited Wat Mahannapharam School, one of 437 schools under the BMA, in Phra Nakhon district, to observe the first day of classes.

He said the BMA had put in place measures to regulate mobile phone use in schools following concerns that children were developing shorter attention spans, worsening eyesight, and reduced interaction with teachers and classmates.

He said several schools had already tested the plan with positive results. He added that studies from several countries supported the effectiveness of such measures.