Introduction
Phones have become a big part of our life no matter who we are. They are part of our lifestyles from the moment we wake up to the moment we close our eyes. It is already a major gadget that if it is taken away will just cause a major shift in people’s lives. Their phone is part of their daily life and can’t be taken away just like that knowing 90 percent of teens have a phone, a University of Nebraska-Lincoln made a study with 777 students and found that an average respondent used their technology 10.93 times on a school day. ('Mobile Devices and their Place in the Classroom.') As you can see that’s actually a pretty low number than expected of phone usage. Cellphones are portrayed as such a negative technology that people seem to ignore the benefits they can bring you. While students being addicted to cell phones can be a problem, schools should allow students to carry cell phones with them because of their freedom to practice self-discipline with their phone usage, maximize school resources, and students' safe.
First, schools should allow students to carry cell phones with them because of their freedom to practice self-discipline with their phone usage. Children need to learn to treat freedom responsibly. What I mean by this is that if we get children to get used to someone always being on them telling them what to do, as they grow up they won’t know how to take their own decisions and know the limit to their freedom. Phones should be allowed in class because it allows students to exercise self-discipline no matter their age or activity, which is proved by a study by the University of Pennsylvania, that self-discipline plays a big part in a student’s success. Also, them having the freedom of their phone usage allows them to learn how to deal with freedom in a workplace responsibly. Greenling, director of instructional technology, believes that some classrooms are just not interesting enough and that’s why students get distracted with other things like their phones because their brains are wired to do that. Before passing notes, portable cassettes, or daydreaming was their form of distraction, so it will still occur with or without cellphones. (Why Students should be using their Phones in Class)
Additionally, phones also maximize school resources. Schools see a phone as an obstacle to learning. They focus on what is wrong with a phone and not think of options a phone can bring to your classroom. But many schools are realizing that students have found ways to make good use of the phone, for example with educational apps like Remind101 to remind students of their school work due date. This type of app a phone is willing to offer does not just benefit the student but the teacher and the whole classroom. Students being able to bring their own technology helps teachers maximize their resources when not enough Ipads, Chromebooks, or devices are available. Implementing phones into classrooms allows students to use their phones for more school and less personal use. (Mobile Devices and their Place in the Classroom) This benefits the school because they don’t have to spend money on tablets or laptops. These devices are very helpful due to the fact there are many helpful acts like dictionary apps for foreign students or Kahoot which are educational apps. ('Why Students should be using their Phones in Class.') It is even more beneficial because they are free apps without a charge. Nothing is better than saving schools money.
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Finally, the most important reason Schools should allow students to carry cell phones with them is students' safety. Cellphones are slowly gaining a place in schools according to statistics. K-12 grade schools had a ban percentage of cellphones which dropped to 66% then to 35%, this has been a dramatic drop in a matter of years from the beginning according to the National Center for Education Statistics. Cell phones keep students connected to the outside world during times of emergency. For example, during the school shooting in Florida many students were able to communicate with their parents and call 911. Also, Leslie Meredith, TechNewsDaily, stated that after the Chardon High school shooting, students either used their mobile devices to call 911 or check in with their parents. After this incident and experiencing this emergency situation they obtained new ideas for their “alert, lockdown, inform, counter, evacuate”, where phones will be a big part of it. ('Why Students should be using their Phones in Class.' )
The argument of students being addicted to cell phones might come up. They say the addiction to phones is affecting children's mental health. Students can’t even focus in a classroom with everything that is going on, on their phones. As studies show, Kids spending hours in front of a screen instead of socializing is unhealthy. Due to this, skills that help you into a successful person are being delayed. This is significant because as a Pew Research Study shows, 95% of Americans have a cellphone, and 7-year-old kids are already carrying a cellphone on their first day of school, affecting their development at a young age. This addiction can create isolation, obesity, and depression, a child psychologist states. Jean M, Twenge, San Diego State psychologist, research has shown that teenagers who feel better online than being out in the world are on the edge of mental problems. Twenge’s surveys also state that kids spend so many hours on social media that they forget about the socializing world outside and end up feeling lonely. But this might not be as oppositive because even the strictest school N.Y.C is thinking of opening the door to cell phones for various reasons. The largest school district plans on allowing cell phones in school, taking into consideration that many other schools see the cellphone as something efficient. The New York city school which is one of the strictest is planning to undergo some changes that will align it with other school districts’ systems and policies. This is because Mayor Bill and Chancellor Carmen Farina pushed to end this ban on cellphones in the most populated school. ('N.Y.C. Schools to Open Doors to Student Cellphones.') The people in favor of allowing phones argue that it is for safety purposes and not classroom disruption. But allowing cell phones might be a problem for 88 schools that have metal detectors trying to keep phones out. If this policy comes into place students who desire to own a phone would have to pay to keep them in a commercial cell phone storage vehicle. Class Size Matters has never agreed with banning phones. Ms. Haimson believes the banning of phones in some schools affects poor and colored people the most. She believes the schools that ban cell phones are unevenly distributed mostly in poor neighborhoods, where there are more people of color, and dangerous neighborhoods, where cell phones are actually needed the most. Tenika Boyd, a mother of a 3rd grade, the primary concern is safety. A report showed support from parents towards the potential of cell phones, with over half of parents agreeing that schools should find more educational uses for cell phones. Keith R. Krueger, the CEO of the Consortium for School Networking, said that over the past five years, many schools have adjusted their cell phone policies.
Conclusion
Indeed, while students being addicted to cell phones can be a problem, schools should allow students to carry cell phones with them. Instead of taking a look at all the negatives let’s look at the benefits and how much easier it makes our lives. People believe this technology is worsening people’s everyday life but don’t come to realize our future consists of smart people creating new things to make life easier.
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