The phone goes in the locker. And at home?
The Dutch government wants phones locked away for the entire school day from 1 January 2027, including breaks and the schoolyard. A good step. But at half past three the locker opens again, and at home the homework is still sitting in an app.
What was announced
On 5 October, the government sent its updated strategy on children's rights online to the Dutch parliament. One part got most of the attention: the "thuis of in de kluis" agreement, "at home or in the locker". Since 2024, phones have not been allowed in the classroom. Now that becomes the whole school day, across the whole school grounds, in both primary and secondary school.
It is not a law. State Secretary Tielen is making agreements about it with schools, leaving room for tailored solutions where needed. A letter on the details will follow later this year. Many schools already follow this policy anyway, of their own accord.
The reason the government gives is clear. Concentration, calm, more real contact. And less exposure to apps designed to hold your attention for as long as possible.
That reason doesn't stop at the school gate
The thing is: that reason applies at half past three in the afternoon just as much as at half past nine in the morning. After school, homework begins. And the homework is in Somtoday or Magister, which you open on your phone.
That is exactly where things went wrong in our own homes. A quick look at what's due tomorrow. Then "just one more" message... And fifteen minutes later you're still on the couch. Not because our daughters were so keen, but because the school app and the rest of the phone live on the same device.
At school, the government now has an answer to that. At home, it's up to parents. The strategy letter says so itself: parents play "a leading role", but regularly feel "unsure how to act". You want to, but how?
Extending the locker to home
You don't need to buy a locker for your house. A basket in the hallway or on the kitchen counter works too. Phone goes in during homework, or after a set time in the evening. The hard part isn't the basket. The hard part is that your child keeps having a good reason to take the phone back out: "I just need to check my schedule for tomorrow."
That's why we made Loek. A calm e-ink screen on the desk that shows the schedule, homework and tests, straight from Somtoday. No app, no notifications, and it does nothing else. The school reason for the phone disappears. What's left is a normal agreement between parent and child.
Or waiting longer with the smartphone
There's also a second group of parents. They don't want to give their child a smartphone yet, or want to wait as long as possible. They're not alone in that. The Dutch national guideline on healthy screen use advises holding off on social media until 15, and not giving a first smartphone before the end of primary school.
But in the first year of secondary school, that often gets stuck. Not on the friend group, but on school itself: the schedule changes, a test is added, the homework is online. A child without a phone then misses things. With Loek, that doesn't have to happen. The schedule is right there on the desk, and waiting with a smartphone stays a choice rather than a disadvantage.
To be fair
At many schools, your child also has a laptop that runs Somtoday. So Loek isn't the only way to see the schedule. The difference is that with Loek you don't have to open something that can also do everything else. You look, you know, and you get to work.
And Loek doesn't solve everything. The government is rightly also working on rules for platforms, an age limit for social media and attention to addictive design. That's work for The Hague and Brussels. What happens at home is up to us as parents. We wanted to make that a bit easier for those parents, ourselves included.
Want your child to have an overview of school at home, without reaching for the phone?
Discover Loek - School info without a smartphone.
Do you work at a school that uses Somtoday and are you about to inform parents about the new phone policy? The page for schools explains how the connection works: no cost, no app, no admin.
Jelle and Jochem
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Sources:
Loek is made by Focusmet B.V., founded by two parents who think focus matters more than ever, with everything that competes for attention today.