Starting from the first semester of this year, the use of smartphones by students has been banned during classes in elementary, middle, and high schools nationwide.

The Ministry of Education and regional offices of education are now set to implement policies starting in the second semester to reduce smartphone use across overall school life, going beyond just class hours.

The Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education will designate 300 "Phone-Free Schools" by the end of this year, practically placing a full restriction on the use of mobile phones unrelated to educational activities.

The Gangwon State Office of Education will also pilot "Smartphone Clean Schools" at 10 elementary, middle, and high schools and 3 kindergartens starting next month.

This approach reduces smartphone use during break times and while waiting for school buses, and the office plans to distribute 10,000 clean phones—limited to calling, texting, and location tracking functions—next year.

The Daegu Metropolitan Office of Education and the Jeonbuk State Office of Education are also pushing for similar pilot projects starting in the second semester.

As smartphone regulations expand, controversies surrounding them are expected to grow.

Previously, in February, the National Human Rights Commission of Korea recommended that a high school which comprehensively restricted mobile phone use on campus rectify its living regulations, stating that it "excessively infringes upon students' fundamental rights."