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Cell Phones in the Classroom.

Every since I was in high school it has been a huge debate as to whether or not cell phones should be allowed in classrooms. It was all to often that someones phone would go off with some crazy ringtone, the teacher would get mad, the cell phone would get taken away, and the parents would come up to the school throwing a fit because it isn't the administrations right to take away the phone. This was pretty much a daily event at my school.  Even today in college there is always that one person in class with their phone on vibrate and you hear it go off every five minutes. Yes, this can be annoying but is it a question of the students being irresponsible or the teachers not taking full advantage or the technology in front of them?

The way technology is moving one can assume that the longer we wait the more uses for cell phones in the class room will pop up. Currently I have heard of teachers using cell phones to take polls and also have heard of teachers allowing students to look up information on their phone when a computer isn't present, but I am not completely convinced that that is all cell phones are good for. There has to be more ways.

Below are a few articles that list the pros and cons to cell phone use in school.

http://www.ehow.com/about_5393195_pros-cons-cell-phones-schools.html

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/cell-phones-in-school-pros-and-cons.html

Also below is a video of a teacher looking for ways to use cell phones in the classroom. Some of the things he brings up is having students send him their assignments attached in a text message and also using them for testing or a "life line."



I also found this next video interesting. It is discussing the cons of having cell phones in class and the issues one school in particular are facing but the question that came to my mind is "Is this really a con of students catching their teachers acting in unprofessional ways?"





Much like the debate of computers in the class room there is never really a black and white answer. Society has to make the choices they feel best and deal with the pros and cons of every choice. The way society is moving I think that it is easier for the schools to embrace technology and cell phones rather then try to keep it out of the classroom and the schools.

**Picture used with permission from pics4learning.com