Turcan calls for phones ban in schools similar to Denmark’s, after the PISA results: „We, who have much worse results, what are we waiting for?”

„Denmark, after the PISA results, wants to decide: phones out of schools! We, who have much worse results, what are we waiting for?”, Raluca Turcan said on Friday in a Facebook post.

The MP claims that she submitted a bill several months ago that would ban mobile phones in schools and states that the initiative received a positive opinion from the Ministry of Education. Turcan asks the Education Committee of the Chamber of Deputies to put the bill on the agenda and adopt it quickly.

Denmark reacts to PISA results

The Danish government announced on September 10 a plan for a “total ban” on mobile phones and other private screens in public and independent schools. The restriction would apply to both classrooms and schoolyards, including breaks. Danish authorities linked the measure to the problem of concentration and the results of PISA 2025.

Results published by the Danish Ministry of Education show that students in Denmark scored 478 points in science, 471 in mathematics and 460 in reading in 2025. According to Danish authorities, these are the worst results recorded by the country’s students since Denmark entered the PISA testing in 2000.

In Romania, the results are significantly weaker. According to official PISA 2025 data, Romanian students scored 425 points in science, 419 in math, and 413 in reading.

Less than half of Romanian students reach the minimum level in mathematics

PISA 2025 data shows that only 48% of Romanian students reach at least the minimum proficiency level in mathematics, meaning that more than half remain below this threshold. In reading, the percentage is 52%, and in science 54%. The OECD average is much higher: 65% in mathematics, 69% in reading and 74% in science.

Even at the top of the rankings, Romania’s situation is difficult. Only about 4% of Romanian students reach levels 5 or 6 in math, 2% in science, and 1% in reading.

In addition, Romania has significant socioeconomic disparities. The Ministry of Education shows that the difference between the results of students in urban and rural areas reaches approximately 100 PISA points, depending on the domain assessed.

Phones and distractions associated with poorer outcomes

One of the arguments invoked by Raluca Turcan is the link between distraction through digital devices and school performance.

According to PISA 2025 data, in Romania, distraction by digital devices during science lessons is associated with a difference of 18 PISA points, compared to 11 points at the OECD average. However, the Ministry of Education states that the data indicates an association, it does not prove that phones are the sole cause of poor results.

In Denmark, 36% of students said they were distracted by digital devices or media during most or every science lesson. Only about a quarter said they were never or almost never distracted.

In fact, PISA data shows that in 2025, 65% of Danish students studied in schools where the use of mobile phones was prohibited on school premises, compared to the OECD average of 49%.

„It is not a punishment for children and not a war with technology. It is an extremely useful measure to restore our children’s ability to concentrate,” says Raluca Turcan.

The MP says, however, that banning phones cannot solve the problems of the education system alone.

„We need better teaching, teachers supported to perform, more open programs, objective assessment, policies for vulnerable children, and much stronger intervention where poverty today defines a child’s school performance,” Turcan added.

The PISA 2025 results thus show that Romania has much broader problems than the simple use of phones in schools: low performance in mathematics, reading and science, a high share of students below the minimum proficiency level and very large socioeconomic differences. At the same time, OECD data confirms that digital distraction is one of the problems that affects the learning process and that educational policies are trying to limit.