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February 24, 2011 at 11:09:54 AM
Joeb blogs
I would like to know why exactly they feel this way. I know for a fact that a cell phone is a life saver in schools. We can now cross examin the teach material with wiki's and see where the facts are. We can pass along homework and work together using facebook twitter and text messaging. There is a camera to snap a note and even capture abuse! There is voice memo to record lectures. There is soo many reasons to HAVE a cell phone. talking to friends? Distraction? Thats not a cell phone problem thats a the students problem as before cell phones were even known in the class students were busy passing notes and knowing less and taking what they learned as the gospel truth.

February 24, 2011 at 11:41:46 AM
Larry Abas
Hand-held electronics like tablets and smart phones can play an important role for our 15% of students, that have different forms of learning disabilities. This is not to say that texting should be allowing in class, but rather speech recognition, and text-to-speech can be provided in a portable form factor. Low cost data plans like those from Wind Mobile are a boon to LD students and open up concepts like a virtual Educational Assistant. Dual cammera devices could allow face-to-face help, showing work and the student simultaneously. Educational Assistants could be better utilized, more accountable. A real potential to lower support costs exists.

Banning any technology, could violate the rights of students with learning disabilities and exceptions must be allowed.

Allowing only a few LD students to access technology can differentiate those LD students from regular students which is also not desired.

February 24, 2011 at 12:03:28 PM
June
Cell Phones in the classroom should be unacceptable. This is a big distraction for students to entertain failing grades.

Cell phones is a necessity to carry outside of classes for proctection purposes but certainly not while in the classroom.

Cell phones can be a real nuisance to the professors.

Thanks! Happy dialing outside classes.

February 24, 2011 at 2:54:09 PM
Darryl
How many times have you heard the story about the kid who had the cell phone and was able to alert police when someone shot up their school. Almost every time one of those awful stories comes out, it is the student with the cell phone, whics wasn't allowed in the first place, who is told they did a great deed by alerting the authorities. As a parent, and a former student, I'd say that it is most definately necessary for my son to carry his phone into class with him, although he does know that any use of that phone will result in severe punishment if he gets in trouble with the teacher. It's there for an emergency, and that's it, if he uses it improperly, then he's punished. However, that little saftey net in his pocket is ok with me in that case. I can actually remember when camera phones first came out, I used mine to record another student physically and mentally assaulting another student while the teacher was in that hall, I was suspended for using my phone in class after I brought it to the attention of the principal. When my mom went to the school board the principal was fired