Smart glasses fall under Iceland’s school device ban

Smart glasses are covered by Iceland’s ban on phones and smart devices during school hours, the Ministry of Education and Children said in response to a question from mbl.is.

Education and Children’s Minister Inga Sæland recently signed a regulation covering the use of phones and smart devices during school hours in compulsory schools and after-school centres. Under the rules, devices not owned or managed by a school or centre generally cannot be used during school hours.

The regulation defines smart devices as portable devices other than phones that can connect to the internet or other devices and have functions comparable to those of smartphones. Smartwatches, tablets and wireless headphones are among the examples listed, though the list is not exhaustive. Smart glasses are covered depending on their functions.

Schools and after-school centres will decide how to apply the rules, taking account of their own policies and privacy concerns, particularly when devices can record images or sound. The ministry said it does not know whether, or how often, smart glasses have been used in schools or after-school centres.

Smart glasses have not yet become widespread in Iceland. Schools in Oslo have banned them, in part over privacy concerns, as many models can record video at any time.