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I spent the better part of the day yesterday exploring infographics on the Digital Buzz blog (see here and here), and in the process, I decided that I wanted to start making infographics.

Here's my first:

Download Infographic_CellphonesinSchools

I don't really like the graphic I'm using for the set of 25-I would have rather used the same icon colored differently-but including the whole data set (a John Holland recommendation) probably makes sense.

Download Infographic_CellphonesinSchoolsREVISED

I like it. Using fewer circles makes the image more interesting and graphic. And before you jump all over it, I intentionally left the scale/key off so that I could use this to prove a point in the activity I'm planning:

Download Infographic_CellphonesinSchoolsLargeDiscs
Here's another version that uses a simple pie graph to make the same point:

Download Infographic_CellphonesinSchoolsPie
And here's a final version using circles to make the same point:

Download Infographic_CellphonesinSchoolsCircles

What makes these different versions of the same slide so amazing is that some of them are just plain wrong. Some communicate the ratio incorrectly and some leave out important labels and/or keys. Some use colors in a confusing way. Others communicate the ratio I'm trying to express accurately, and still others are probably more visually engaging.

I can talk with them about the reasons that authors are turning to infographics when working to communicate information-we do live in a visual society after all-and the tricks that they use to capture attention and to intentionally obscure information.

We can also talk about what viewers should look for when studying infographics--and what authors should consider when creating infographics.

Are these the kinds of lessons that we ought to be teaching our kids? Will my slides be useful in working with kids? What about with adults?

Looking forward to your feedback-and I hope you can use this slide somewhere in your work.

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Infographic Lesson: Cell Phones in Schools

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I spent the better part of the day yesterday exploring infographics on the Digital Buzz blog (see here and here), and in the process, I decided that I wanted to start making infographics.

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Microsoft and Verizon might think all the kids want to do with their new Kin phones is pay absurd data rates for a half-baked Twitter experience, but it turns out Generation Upload is still actually just Generation Text Message. That's at least the word according to a Pew Internet Research survey published on April 20th and neatly summed up by a new Flowlogic infographic published today -- only 23 percent of American teenagers with cellphones use social networks with their phones, while 72 percent of all teens use text messaging. You might argue that Kin seeks to flip that balance, but Pew found that 63 percent of teens with cell phones don't have data plans and the vast majority of teen cellphone plans are part of a larger family plan, so the Kin's $30 / month data rate might be a hard sell to Mom and Dad.

We also thought voice calling on the Kin seemed like an afterthought to texting and social networking, but it turns out more and more older kids simply turn to the phone: 77 percent of 17 year olds text each other, but 60 percent of them call each other's cell phones -- and only 33 percent of them connect over social networking sites. Perhaps most damningly, Pew says nearly half -- 46% -- of teens play games on their phones, but Kin has no games at all. The report is actually full of other interesting tidbits like this and the infographic is quite nice, so hit the read links to check 'em out -- perhaps Microsoft and Verizon should do the same.

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Survey says: most teens don't have a data plan, almost all send texts

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Microsoft and Verizon might think all the kids want to do with their new Kin phones is pay absurd data rates for a half-baked Twitter experience, but it turns out Generation Upload is still actually just Generation Text Message.

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Instead of opting to ban or ignore them, you have a third option: harness their power. Learn how you can turn this obstacle into a win for your students

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It's hard to separate a teenager from his or her phone, but it might be for his or her good - particularly during the school day. Here are five thought-provoking reasons schools should consider banning the devices from their classrooms:

1. Academic Performance Improvement

According to a study conducted by researchers at the University of Texas and Louisiana State University, when schools forbid students from bringing their smartphones into the classroom, their grades quickly improve on the whole. Because students were subsequently more attentive in class, their test scores increased by an average of 6 percent.

We're not talking about younger kids, either. The results were most pronounced for high school students over 16 who - not coincidentally - are the teenagers most addicted to their cellphones. Taking away phones for students under 14 had less of an academic impact, seemingly because they spend less time using their phones during class anyway.

2. It's Even Better for At-Risk Students

While most students seemed to get an educational bump when they were without their cellphones in class, the difference was most pronounced among at-risk students. Students who live in poverty or attend special education classes or have subpar grades benefited approximately twice as much as their peers after ditching the technological distraction. Considering that at-risk kids need every advantage they can get, why not go for it?

By removing their phones from the classroom, it was the equivalent of adding an extra hour of class per week, a perk that most teachers could only dream of. Altogether, students lose almost a full week of school interacting with their phones rather than engaging in class.

3. Cuts Down on Screen Time

Scientists continue to warn about the dangers of kids spending so much time in front of a screen. It's normal for kids to spend about six hours per day in front of a screen - be it a computer, phone or television - and that's not even including any screen time that occurs at school.

One key way to ensure that students' eyes and minds receive a much-needed reprieve from so much screen staring is to minimize the amount that occurs at school. That starts with explicitly keeping smartphones from entering the classroom.

4. Reduces Cyberbullying

Teens can be vicious with their online messages. While it's difficult enough to police that sort of mean behavior at night, at least some of that behavior can be reduced by preventing kids from using Twitter or Facebook during the school day. Kids should feel safe at school and not have to continually check their social media accounts to ensure that a peer isn't posting cruel or harassing messages.

While bullying is easier for teachers to spot - and subsequently intervene - when it plays out in real life, itÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s impossible to tell what students are communicating to each other silently on their phones.

5. The Emergency Debate

The main reason that parents advocate for their kids having phones in the classroom is that they want to be able to reach them in case of an emergency. In order for them to be able to receive that emergency message, however, they'd have to not only leave their phones on, but also check their phones constantly to ensure that they'd receive this message. Most likely, they'd be wading through a lot of distracting, non-emergency messages throughout the school day on the chance that something important might get sent.

The good thing about schools is that they have secretaries to facilitate emergency calls, so parents can call the school rather than the student. School schedules make it easy to locate a student at any point throughout the day, so an important message can be passed along with little effort.

Photo Credit: Mikaela Shannon/Unsplash

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5 Reasons to Ban Smartphones in School | Care2 Causes

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It's hard to separate a teenager from his or her phone, but it might be for his or her good - particularly during the school day. Here are five thought-provoking reasons schools should consider banning the devices from their classrooms: According to a study conducted by researchers at the University of Texas and Louisiana State University, when schools forbid students from bringing their smartphones into the classroom, their grades quickly improve on the whole.