In what may be a growing trend in the dati leumi community, Jerusalem’s prominent Chorev Yeshiva has announced a ban on students coming to school with smartphones. The ban is not on owning one, but simply against bringing it to school.
According to a Kippa report, students were not thrilled to hear of the policy decision, and they launched a website to enlist support against the move. The decision was first announced a number of months ago after which staff met with parents, with some supportive while others opposed. However, it is now final and emails were sent to the families informing them that smartphones are no longer permitted in school.
The students feel the decision is too harsh and the yeshiva’s administration should address this as it does with other issues, entering into a dialogue with students. They admit that there are problems which stem from cellular telephones but they feel a total and absolute ban is an extreme response. Student representatives have met with the principal as well, voicing their objections.
School principal Rav Yitzchak Dor explains “We are not the first and we have simply decided to adopt the decision made by others schools. I am in favor of smartphones and I don’t have a problem with the internet or the phones. I heard that Rabbi Weizmann from Maalot said the internet is a platform for Moshiach for it connects everyone instantaneously and I agree. It is an excellent vehicle without a ‘but’. It represents good technology. I don’t have a problem with them owning the phones,” Kippa quotes the rav as saying.
The rav feels the problem exists not during classroom time, but during the breaks. For one thing, two students may be speaking on Facebook while a third sits in a classroom. “We want them to get back to playing soccer” he explains. The rav adds there is also the spiritual issue, and this he explains depends on the person with the phone. He admits some are more in control while others less, and it is difficult to create a sterile spiritual atmosphere when it is difficult to control browsing content.
He stresses that the browsing content is his last concern, and that is why he mentioned it last, for he feels it is a distraction in school by competing for student’s attention during learning hours.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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7 Responses
It bears mentioning that Chorev is a high-school.
Keep sliding to the right DL community. The Charedi community will still never accept you until you do t’shuva and adopt their uniform and worldview.
So quit chasing after their approval.
You have done extremely well and R’Kook Z’tl would be proud of all you have accomplished. Don’t blow it by selling out his ideas.
#2 This is not an action decided upon in order to gain anyones approval, it is a fact of life in almost all schools in USA.
Do not bring phones to school or deposit them in the office upon arrival,,rules in MO, Centrist, Charedi Lite and other yeshivos.
1. Why shold a student have a phone in school. At the most, they should one in their bag, turned off. They are supposed to be paying attention to their studies.
2. When Hareidi institutions say something like that, the hilonim say it is a scandal. That is just another argument that the hilonim are our enemies. In fact, such bans are common in all types of educational institutions and workplaces. If you are supposed to be doing something, and unless you are a telephone marketer, you don’t need your phone. This has nothing to do with religion.
theyr not moving to the right and they say that the internet is holy just they would rather the boys play soccer lol
2: don’t confuse dati leumi with Modern Orthodox. When it came to tznius, R Kook z’l was even more “right wing” than Satmar. Even Satmar have no problem with women voting as long as it is not in Israeli elections.
Don’t confuse an issue that is common in every culture with an halachic one. Internet access in school, unless restricted to curricular purposes, is a serious distraction. Ability to phone or text when you are in school, is not a problem limited to frum kids. Kids spending all the time with devices and not getting any exercise is apparently a growing public health problem (which the frum community has realized yet, probably since we have less internet penetration than the goyim).
These are not halachic questions. There is “hareidi” or “modern” issue.