Banning Cellphones in School
School 's have safety and convenience in mind, too, but they often view the presence of cell phones as detracting from both. First, the presence of cell phones can be disruptive to the business of school. When students are engaged in texting and calling each other, it interrupts classes, creates drama that must then be sorted out by staff, and distracts students from the real reason they are in school. When cell phones inevitably go missing or are stolen, schools wind up devoting precious time dealing with the aftermath.
While it would be convenient for students to be able to contact a parent in the event of a tragedy such as a school shooting or other event, the reality is that hundreds of students placing calls at the same time would likely tie up the phone lines in such a way that emergency calls to police or fire and rescue might not be able to get through in a timely manner, putting additional lives at risk.
Additionally, students are so adept at texting that many can do it without even looking. This raises the likelihood that students could possibly use their phones to cheat on tests or other graded assignments. It would be simple for a student to hide his or her phone in their lap or pocket, and only pull it out to text or view text when the teacher isn 't looking. Students could easily text their friends to communicate about test answers
An increasing problem that schools are struggling to figure out how to handle is that of sexting. Sexting involves students taking sexually explicit pictures of themselves or others and sending them to friends and other students. Current technology makes this incredibly easy to do, and the presence of cell phones in schools increases the possibility of this happening in the school setting. Students could secretly photograph other students in compromising positions, such as in school restrooms or locker rooms, and transmit the photos to the entire student body within a matter of seconds. The resulting chaos would
While it would be convenient for students to be able to contact a parent in the event of a tragedy such as a school shooting or other event, the reality is that hundreds of students placing calls at the same time would likely tie up the phone lines in such a way that emergency calls to police or fire and rescue might not be able to get through in a timely manner, putting additional lives at risk.
Additionally, students are so adept at texting that many can do it without even looking. This raises the likelihood that students could possibly use their phones to cheat on tests or other graded assignments. It would be simple for a student to hide his or her phone in their lap or pocket, and only pull it out to text or view text when the teacher isn 't looking. Students could easily text their friends to communicate about test answers
An increasing problem that schools are struggling to figure out how to handle is that of sexting. Sexting involves students taking sexually explicit pictures of themselves or others and sending them to friends and other students. Current technology makes this incredibly easy to do, and the presence of cell phones in schools increases the possibility of this happening in the school setting. Students could secretly photograph other students in compromising positions, such as in school restrooms or locker rooms, and transmit the photos to the entire student body within a matter of seconds. The resulting chaos would
References: Melville, Elizabeth. "Cell Phones: Nuisance or Necessity." Teaching Today, 2006. Chen, Grace. "Should Public Schools Ban Cell Phones?" Public School Review, 2008.