Overview
- The two ministries unveiled a 40-page guideline in Hannover that provides legal clarifications, age-specific recommendations, and a toolbox with templates, project ideas, and participation formats for school rules.
- For primary schools, private smartphones and smartwatches are explicitly not recommended, with smartwatches limited to watch functions or flight mode where exceptions are made.
- Secondary schools are urged to adopt differentiated models such as device-free times and zones, with private use barred during lessons and phased access considered for older grades.
- All state schools in both Länder are instructed to begin internal consultations now and to adopt binding rules via school conferences by the autumn holidays of 2026.
- Reactions are mixed, as governing parties and parent–student representatives endorse the participatory approach while the CDU and some parent initiatives press for faster, legally enforceable bans, citing health risks highlighted by pediatricians.