Overview

• The CDU education ministers met in Erfurt and said a statutory, one-size-fits-all ban in secondary schools is not the answer.
• Thuringia’s Christian Tischner argued private phone use should not occur at schools, with the specifics decided locally by school conferences.
• Saxony-Anhalt’s Jan Riedel called for the state to set guidelines so schools can negotiate solutions that reflect real-life smartphone use.
• Following talks with Leopoldina experts, ministers highlighted calls for more media literacy and clear rules as Leopoldina urges bans up to grade 10 and social-media limits under 13.
• Policy remains fragmented as Schleswig-Holstein and Hesse enforce stricter rules with limited exceptions, Bavaria plans an extension to grade seven, and Thuringia’s Mario Voigt promotes higher age thresholds.