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Hugh Grant was frustrated with the “luxurious private schools” his children attended when they pushed for banning laptops and tablets from the classroom.
On Wednesday, the 64-year-old actor joined American social psychologist and writer Jonathan Height and King Charles III’s second cousin Sophie Winkleman to host Open Mind for an event hosted by Group Close Screen.
While speaking during the event, Grant, the father of five, accused her of promoting her child’s dependence on technology and limiting outdoor play.
The “Bridget Jones’ Diary” star described herself as “another angry parent fighting an eternal, exhausted, depression battle with children who want to be on screen.”
Hugh Grant, 64, acknowledges the challenge of being an older father and jokes about “unbearable” playtime
Hugh Grant blows up the “outrageous high-class private school” where his children attend. (Carlos Alvarez/Getty Images)
Grant also blows up school officials at “silly high-class private schools” because of their “pathetic” rules that he claimed to keep children indoors.
“They say they don’t intend to play outside today because it’s raining, or they say they can’t go to climbing frames because it’s windy,” the actor said. Telecommunications Wednesday.
“That’s pathetic,” Grant continued. “It seems like there’s space here for hero schools, school sets to break the mold.”
The actor is pushing to remove laptops and tablets from school. (Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Images)
The Golden Globe winners share 12-year-old John Mango and daughters Lulu, 9-year-old Blue (7) with his wife Anna Aberstein. Grant is also the father of 13-year-old daughter Tabitha and 11-year-old son Felix, who shares with former partner Tinlan Hong.
Grant explained that after getting tired of the school’s overreliance on technology in the classroom, he decided to speak up.
“The last straw was when schools began to smugly say, ‘We’ll give every child a chrome book.’ And they do a lot of lessons on Chromebooks and do all their homework on Chromebooks. You just thought it was the last thing they needed, the last thing we needed,” he said.
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The grant accused children of restricting them from playing outside. (Getty Images)
In addition to banning smartphones for children under the age of 14, Haidt defends schools without phones, in addition to banning students under the age of 16 from using social media in their classes.
According to the Guardian, in his 2024 book, The Ancient Generation, Haidt stated that smartphones have produced “a mental illness epidemic,” leading to “fragmentation of attention” in the brains of younger generations,” and “by rewiring.”
Grant said other parents have not expressed concern about increasing digital consumption in education due to fear of “shaking boats.”
Grant called on other parents to join him in his efforts to remove technology from the classroom. (Jeff Kravitz/Getty Images for Warnermedia)
However, he called on other parents to join him in his efforts to fight educational skills. [EdTech] Because he believes that seeking support from schools and governments is in vain.
“Do you lobby the school? If so, what is the strange, sudden, frozen, silence from them about this issue?” he said.
“Would you go to the government? My experience, [press ethics campaign] Hacking for over 12 years is probably a bad idea,” Grant pointed out. “I’m very cynical about it now.
“I don’t think politicians will do anything, even if it’s the right thing to protect children,” he added. “They just do things to get them votes, they care about their careers.
“So I think the third option on this, chasing after my parents, is the right one, because once you get a key chunk of parents who are furious with Edtech, it’s time to listen to all the other issues, phone calls, etc. because politicians are scared of it.
“That’s also when schools start listening because they’re scared they’ll leave school and lose business.”
