Essay on Importance Of Cell Phones In The Classroom

Cell Phones have always had a bad reputation given out by the public. Many reasons for this are the distractions But in 2006,  New York one of the biggest school boards in the United States, removed cell phone bans in classrooms stating, “ it can help parents contact their child” As a result Of This schools are allowing students to bring in their phones to school. Now that phones are allowed in schools they are receiving hate again. But phones aren't all bad; they can be used for many things such as educational tools, safety precautions and even teaching responsible usage.

We haven’t always used technology in the classroom, But as time goes on the world changes, and technology and phones are always evolving. Teachers are often hesitant to allow new technology into their classrooms for many different reasons. The main reason is because of the distractions it brings into the classroom. A prime example of this is YouTube. In 2005 when YouTube came out, Many teachers tried to avoid the use of it because they were worried their students would be distracted.  Although, 15 years later YouTube is used in classrooms as a learning tool. Teachers are able to find a variety of videos, but why can’t we do the same with phones? Vilson states “I don't believe that phones provide much more of a distraction than kids already have. It depends on how you approach the whole process”. Some teachers enjoy using iPads as projectors, but why can we still not use phones?  John Giambalvo says that “Allowing students to use cell phones in the classroom for specific, academic purposes has the power to increase student engagement and allow teachers to more effectively assess learning on a daily basis.” Teachers have the opportunity to engage their students more, why wouldn’t they? “We need to stop pushing against the technology and start embracing it. The more we push back, the more we separate ourselves from students. It is time to incorporate and collaborate instead of ban and punish.” stated Amber Schaefer. Having a more positive attitude towards phones in school will make the world more adaptable. Students can even have educational apps to help them learn. Along with these apps students also need to have safety while on phones, for themselves and others.

Safety is a key part of daily life, especially at school. Students go to school 5 days a week for ten months and accidents can happen. A student who goes to school with their phone is more helpful in an emergency situation than someone who has to leave the situation to retrieve a phone. In case of a greater situation than a scraped knee since 65% of students bring their phone to school they can quickly use their phone to call emergency services, because of this the first responders can arrive and act faster. Communication can be a difficult thing between a student and their parents/guardians at school. The reason for this is simple, students aren't allowed on their phones. Students who are able to contact their parents/ guardians have an easier chance of getting a ride from school, communicating important details like times, and other contact reasons. If students were allowed to text their parents it would make students who leave early have fewer communication problems, less stress, and worry about communications.

At school, many issues with phones can happen. For example going on games/websites that are inappropriate and using social media in class. Even though all these can occur most have precautions and solutions in places such as banning inappropriate websites and social media.  As a result of this students, phones can be helpful but only if students know how to use them responsibly.

Bringing phones into the classroom brings many advantages. One of the advantages is that students learn how to use responsible usage.  In school teachers teach students about the occurrence of hateful things, the body appearances, and the influences it can have on you like influencing behavior. But because teachers teach students about the things to look out for and strategies to help them deal with these occurrences students no more about how to act on one of these situations. In class, students might be tempted to go on their phone to play games and such but Peg Grafwallner has a plan to help diminish this urge. Her plan is called the “ 30 4 30” plan. This plan lets students have a total of 30 minutes on their phones each week. In each class, they are allowed to have 1 minute on their phone. The students aren't allowed to call other students or take photos of one another. The teacher circulates the room for that minute and supervises the activities the students are on. By doing this the students are less tempted to be on their phones in class, instead, they pay attention to the lesson and wait for the next time they are allowed their phones out. By teaching responsible usage and acting it during class students are getting more learning in and are motivated to continue throughout the day.

Cell phones have always been giving a bad reputation but it's time to change that. By allowing phones in school students can use educational tools, safety precautions and use responsible usage on their phones. By implicating these students can be more engaged in school and overall end up more willing to attend school.