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Joined 1 year ago
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Cake day: June 9th, 2023

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  • I’m not necessarily saying they need to learn how the devices work (although some kids do). I’m more saying they need to learn how to use them, as in, when it is appropriate and effective to use their phone, and what they should be using it for. Scrolling through social media in class? Obviously not a good choice when you should be focusing on your learning. Using it as a calculator? Great! We have a calculator in our pocket for just that reason. Fact checking something to make sure what you’re writing in your essay is true? Great! Always back up your writing with sources!

    Phones are just mini computers. We use computers in the classroom because we understand they’re a useful tool. Showing kids how to utilize those tools is important. The younger generation (myself included, although I graduated high school 7 years ago now) see cell phones as an extension of themselves. It’s a tool I use daily to find information, view traffic in real time, keep up to date on current events, and communicate with my family and friends. I use it all the time. I’m very strongly of the opinion that technology is never inherently bad. We just need to teach and model appropriate and effective use.


  • There’s a lot of people here immediately jumping to the “cell phones bad!” conclusion.

    Phones are a part of kids lives nowadays. Banning them in schools isn’t going to help anyone. How are children supposed to learn to use technology safely and effectively if we just take it away from them instead? I don’t want to imply that it is only a teachers job to teach kids about safe technology use, because it isn’t, but kids spend 30+ hours a week at school. It is a large portion of their lives and what they learn in the classroom often ends up reflected in their lives outside of school.

    I think everyone who jumps to the conclusion to ban cell phones in schools is missing the point. All it does is encourage kids to use their technology in unsupervised spaces instead. It doesn’t teach them how to use it safely or effectively, and it doesn’t prevent them from participating in cyber bullying. All it does is push issues such as that outside of the school where kids have arguably less resources and support systems to deal with it.