# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Should Cell Phones Be Allowed in School? | Resilient Educator

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Today's students are digital natives. Nearly three out of four teenagers have access to a smart phone, and so many students take them to school every day. For some teachers, it's probably more uncommon to see a student without one than with one. But are cellphones in the classroom a good idea?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Security and educational use are giving school administrators reason to allow cellphones at school

Cellphones are also creating concern over misuse and access inequities

While many schools still ban phones%2C the number of schools allowing them is quickly rising

At a school district outside Chicago, students participated in a French class by using cellphones to call classmates and speak with them in French.

And when school starts this fall at Mason High School near Cincinnati, students like Mrudu Datla will pack iPads and iPhones in their backpacks.

"(Using technology in everyday life is) not that new to us because we grew up with technology," Datla, a sophomore, said.

Although schools have traditionally banned or limited cellphones in the classroom, 73% of Advanced Placement and National Writing Project teachers said their students use phones in the classroom or to complete assignments, according to a Pew Research Center study released in February.

"Teachers are starting to take advantage of the opportunities of cellphones in the classroom," said George Fornero, superintendent of Township High School District 113, located outside Chicago, whose school system has begun allowing its students use cellphones.

Dan Domenech, executive director of the American Association of School Administrators, said this trend first emerged after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

"The issue of security and red alerts on terrorism threats became an issue, and school systems began to relax the prohibition on cellphones in schools," he said.

Though many of these changing policies banned cellphone use except in emergencies, teachers are lifting the bans and incorporating phones into their curriculum.

Natalie Milman, a George Washington University education technology professor, said that although security was one factor, others were involved.

"As a parent, I can see parents pushing for it when you think of the shootings that happen," she said. "However, with youth, (having a phone) is a very natural part of their ecosystem. It doesn't make sense to close that opportunity for them when they go to school."

She said parents and teachers are realizing educational value of mobile phones, as new features have made these devices relevant to education. "Most people are now coming to school with a computer in their pocket," Domenech said.

During the past few years, some schools, such as Mason High, have implemented "bring your own tech" programs, allowing students to use their devices for schoolwork.

With mobile apps and the Internet at their fingertips, teachers and students are now using phones as clickers to answer questions, providing feedback on student progress, and also to document labs, collaborate on group projects and capture teachers' notes, Milman said.

However, mobile devices have also created concerns.

"(Mobile devices) promote a certain kind of learning ... it's limited," Milman said. "It can be overused and used in ways that aren't educationally meaningful." For this reason, she said, it's important teachers to receive proper training.

Their use has also created worries about cheating, visiting inappropriate websites, sexting or overuse. Policies banning phones were in place to counter these problems, but Fornero said no-tolerance policies were difficult to enforce and distracted administrators from tackling larger issues.

"The kids taught us a lesson: They're still going to bring their phones anyway, so let's allow them to use them in a constructive way," he said.

Bringing cellphones into the classroom raises questions about students who don't own personal devices and schools without necessary infrastructure. Milman said a lot of inequities exist, favoring more affluent, suburban communities.

But Domenech said during his visits to schools around the country - even at schools in poorer areas - he saw that most students owned a mobile device. So far, BYOT programs have been schools' temporary solution, with most students owning mobile devices, to circumvent the digital divide.

Funding has been available for educational training, Milman said, but money for the necessary infrastructure - Wi-Fi access and technical support - has been harder to come by. Fornero said his school system received only local funding for improving its infrastructure.

However, according to Richard Culatta, director of the U.S. Dept. of Education's Office of Educational Technology, the federal government is looking to close that large divide. About 80% of schools in the country don't have the infrastructure to support digital learning, according to government data.

"That's hugely problematic as we look at engaging with fantastic digital resources for learning that are available," he said.

President Obama announced the ConnectED initiative on June 6, which aims to connect 99% of schools around the country to broadband Internet, and the Department of Education is working to prepare teachers to use technology.

While Domenech estimated only 25% of schools now allow phones, he expects that to increase significantly over the next few years. Milman said to address schools' concerns, administrators should establish clear policies with parents and students and consequences for violating them.

"There are schools around the world who are already using these," Milman said. "I think the schools that are not quite there should look to those schools and learn from them."

Contributing: Michael D. Clark, The Cincinnati Enquirer

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
More schools use cellphones as learning tools

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Security and educational use are giving school administrators reason to allow cellphones at school Cellphones are also creating concern over misuse and access inequities While many schools still ban phones%2C the number of schools allowing them is quickly rising At a school district outside Chicago, students participated in a French class by using cellphones to call classmates and speak with them in French.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Many students, like biased media hubs are interested in shocking, horrifying and getting the attention of a mass audience via cheap thrills. A camera phone is the perfect mechanism by which young people aim to derive their 60 minutes of fame. The more shocking the video, the greater the attention/ratings/Youtube-views, take the camera away and the opportunity for fame(main motivation for this sort of erratic behavior) is also removed. [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Happy_slapping]] "Happy Slapping is known to have started in the South London London Borough of Lewisham,[3][4] in a format known as "Slap Happy TV", where a happy-slapping video would be recorded, and then watched by dozens of people like a TV show. The first newspaper article to use the phrase "happy slapping" was "Bullies film fights by phone", published in The Times Educational Supplement on 21 January 2005, in which reporter Michael Shaw described teachers' accounts of the craze in London schools.
The Phrase Finder describes the phenomenon thus:
Meaning:
Unprovoked attacks on individuals made in order to record the event, and especially the victim's shock and surprise, on video phones.
Origin: Happy slapping ... began as a youth craze in the UK in late 2004. Children or passers by are slapped or otherwise mugged by one or more of a gang while others record the event on video and then distribute it by phone or Internet.
Initially the attacks were, as the phrase would have us believe, fairly minor pranks ... As the craze spread the attacks became more vicious - often serious assaults known in legal circles as grievous bodily harm."
[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Happy_slapping#Media-reported_incidents]]
"United Kingdom: On 9 May 2005, a 16-year-old Plant Hill Arts College student was beaten up and left unconscious in a vicious "happy slapping" attack in Blackley. Footage of the attack was circulated on students' phones.[18]
United Kingdom, 18 June 2005: Police arrested three 14-year-old boys for the suspected rape of an 11-year-old girl who attended their school in Stoke Newington, London. Authorities were alerted when school staff saw footage from the students' phones.[19]
United Kingdom, 7 December 2005: Singer Mylene Klass was happy-slapped in Bermondsey, South London.[20]
United Kingdom, December 2005: A 15-year-old-girl, Chelsea O'Mahoney (an alias)[21] and her co-defendants Reece Sargeant, 21, Darren Case, 18, and David Blenman, 17, were all found guilty of the manslaughter of David Morley near Waterloo Station, in London. Barry Lee, 20, and another 17-year-old were cleared of all charges. According to press reports, "The 15-year-old girl had told Morley that she was making a documentary about 'happy slapping' before her gang of friends kicked him to death."[22][23]
Denmark, 10 May 2006: Two men aged 17 and 19 attacked a woman in Copenhagen; one kicked the victim while the other filmed the incident using a mobile phone. Two plain clothes police officers saw the incident, and the assailants were immediately arrested and the mobile phone confiscated.[24]
Sweden, 1 September 2006: After a 16-year-old boy happy-slapped and hospitalised a 15-year-old Balkan boy in the city of Örebro, the victim's 17-year-old sister stabbed and killed the assailant with a hunting knife and claimed self-defence. The killing was filmed and distributed online.[25]
Australia, 23 October 2006: Police in Victoria launched an investigation into the contents of a DVD at the centre of the 2006 Melbourne teenage DVD controversy which contained footage of several teenagers sexually assaulting a girl and setting her hair on fire. Copies of the film were allegedly sold at the Werribee Secondary College for $10.[26][27]
United Kingdom, 26 January 2007: Andrew Elvin, 17, was jailed for a minimum of 12 years for the murder of Luke Salisbury, who died three days after being attacked by Elvin on 2 March 2006. Caine Hallett, 18, was sentenced to five years for manslaughter for the same incident, while Danielle Reeves, 18, faced a retrial in May 2007 for manslaughter.[28]
United Kingdom, 14 February 2007: Eight youths set upon a 31 year-old man in Brighton, who turned out to be an amateur boxer. Two of the youths were hospitalised by the intended victim and four were arrested for causing an affray.[29]
United Kingdom, July 2007: Anthony Anderson, 27, of Hartlepool, urinated on a dying woman while a friend made a video of the incident. He is reported to have yelled "This is YouTube material!" [30]
United Kingdom, November 2007: Emily Nakanda, 15, a contestant in the TV show The X Factor, withdrew from the competition after a happy slapping video in which Nakanda allegedly attacks a teenage girl was discovered on the internet.[31]
United Kingdom, February 2008: A 15-year-old girl admitted filming the death of Gavin Waterhouse, 29, in a "happy slapping" attack which ruptured his spleen,[32] and was convicted of aiding and abetting manslaughter.[33] She was sentenced to two years detention. The judge stated that the courts had to make an example of such youths.[34]
United Kingdom, May 2008: A teenage girl fell to her death from an attic window while trying to escape a "happy slapping" girl gang.[35]
United Kingdom, August 2009: A retired care worker was assaulted and killed by two teens as he left his house of worship.[36]"

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Should the Cell Phones Be Allowed in Schools - DebateWise

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Many students, like biased media hubs are interested in shocking, horrifying and getting the attention of a mass audience via cheap thrills. A camera phone is the perfect mechanism by which young people aim to derive their 60 minutes of fame.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
These days, more and more students are bringing cell phones to class. Even elementary school-aged students have cell phones in their pockets and backpacks.

However, the news of Ontario's decision to ban cell phones in classrooms opens again the debate about whether or not students should have cellphones in school. It also brings up the question of whether it's possible for technology to exist in the classroom as a learning tool-rather than simply a distraction.

Ontario's Classroom Cell Phone Ban

Starting in September 2019, cell phones will be banned in Ontario classrooms during instructional time.

The new ban means elementary and secondary school students won't be able to use their cellphones in the classroom unless it is for educational purposes, medical reasons, or as a support for students with special needs. How the ban is enforced will be up to individual boards and schools.

By banning cellphones, Ontario's Education Ministry hopes to remove distractions so students can focus on acquiring foundational learning skills they need, including reading, writing and math.

The decision and renewed debate has many teachers and parents left wondering: can cell phones ever really benefit students in class, or are they best left tucked away?

Read on to learn more about the pros and cons of students having cell phones in school.

Cell Phone Use In The Classroom

Students check their phones in the classroom an average of more than 11 times a day. That can add up to a lot of time spent distracted from schoolwork. And when students are distracted, it's a recipe for extra stress, frustration, and catch-up time for everyone.

With students spending up to 20% of their in-class time texting, emailing, and checking social media, it's no wonder the debate about cell phones in the classroom is alive and well.

Students check their cell phones in the classroom more than 11 times a day.
[ Tweet this]

Learn more about the pros and cons of students bringing their cell phones into the classroom.

How Cell Phones Can Be Used Effectively In the Classroom

If properly managed, cell phones can be used as tools to help children learn in the classroom. The following are some of the pros of allowing cell phones in school:

1. Using educational learning apps

Cell phones give students access to tools and apps that can help them complete and stay on top of their class work. These tools can also teach students to develop better study habits, like time management and organization skills.

2. Incorporating digital platforms into lessons

Using social media can keep students interested in class and encourage them to participate in the discussion. Some teachers create twitter hashtags or message boards students can use during class discussions to share thoughts and ideas. This can be especially helpful for students who might not be comfortable speaking in class.

3. Supplementing lessons with digital materials

Teachers can take advantage of cell phones by providing students with resources to find more information about a topic. This can include videos, news stories, online discussion groups, and more. Allowing students to access these resources in class can help encourage participation and discussions.

4. Providing easy access to more information

Cell phones can give students access to more information, letting them research more about a topic while having class discussions. This is especially true for current events that have not yet been covered in school textbooks.

The Drawbacks Of Allowing Cell Phones In Classrooms

While cell phones can be used as learning tools, it is a challenge to make sure students are using them for school-related tasks. A cell phone can easily turn from "classroom learning tool" into "classroom disruption".

Cons of allowing cell phones in school include:

1. Distractions and interruptions

When students use their cell phones to check social media and text their friends in class, it leads to distractions for those students as well as for their peers. This can cause disruptions in class, particularly if the teacher is constantly telling students to turn their devices off.

2. Cyberbullying

Cell phones can also lead to increased problems with bullying on the schoolground. Cyberbullying can be harder to see than other forms of bullying, making it difficult for teachers to identify and stop when it is happening.

3. Cheating

Cell phones can be a helpful learning tool in class. But they can also be used by students to access information while taking a test, leading to cheating. Even if a student isn't caught, this can lead to him or her having a poor understanding of the material in the future, and is unfair to students who studied hard to do well.

4. Disconnection from face-to-face activities

While cell phones can help encourage participation by offering different channels, this can also lead to less in-person discussion and fewer learning opportunities. Learning to work together with others is an important part of students' education, and can be lost with too much dependence on cell phones and other digital technology.

The Bottom Line: Should Students Have Cell Phones In School?

There's no easy answer: there are both pros and cons to students having cell phones in school. Although they can be used as a learning tool in the classroom, this only works as long as students use them effectively.

This means for teachers who decide to use cell phones (or any other digital device) as part of their lessons, it's important to set ground rules and keep a close eye on how they are being used.

Where do you stand on the cell phone debate? Let us know by tweeting @oxfordlearning on Twitter!

Related Resources:

Is Multitasking Bad For Students?
How To Study Without Being Distracted

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Should Cell Phones Be Allowed In Classrooms? | Oxford Learning

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Should students have cell phones in the classroom? Learn more about the pros and cons of students having cell phones in school, and weigh in on the debate.