Comments on: Cellphones have no place in these classrooms

By: Barbara Ling

Barbara Ling — Thu, 15 May 2008 15:28:20 +0000

I agree that students will always carry cell phones. Heck, over here across the pond, cell phones are banned at my kids’ school, but I insist they have the ability to reach me whenever an emergency happens. Hence, the cellphones are in the backpacks.

It’s a foolish administration that believes they can ban something that is becoming so common-place with today’s kids.

Data points,

Barbara

Barbara Lings last blog post..Insane Luxury of YesterYear - Pair of 25K Watermelons

By: nova scotia schools

nova scotia schools — Thu, 08 May 2008 09:15:27 +0000

[...] overtones on Tuesday. 26 students were suspended and the police are involved. Yesterday, the Princhttp://ideasandthoughts.org/2008/03/27/cellphones-have-no-place-in-these-classrooms/Nova Scotia introduces take-no-chances budget amid warnings of economic slowdown The Canadian Press [...]

By: Richard Schwier

Richard Schwier — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 21:49:37 +0000

It’s probably healthy to be skeptical about the benefits of cell phones in the classroom. It’s probably healthy to be somewhat skeptical about everything. But to restrict a technology just because we haven’t sorted out heaps of pedagogically sound ways to implement it that are generalizable to a wide range of teachers misses the point, I think.

I know loads of teachers who are skeptical about the worth of collaborative approaches to learning and who have little experience or skill in using collaboration in the classroom. Based on cellphone reasoning, perhaps we should ban collaboration in the classroom — until we can be sure that kids won’t use collaboration to get together, form groups, and attack other kids? I know this is a silly elaboration, but my point is that we have to get away from blaming technologies and their affordances for bad things that happen in schools.

By: Sharon Peters

Sharon Peters — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 21:32:55 +0000

I have lived in Nova Scotia, completed my B.Ed in NS and hold a NS teaching license. The issue here is not about cell phones (smoke and mirrors, my friends) but about racism - plain and simple. We are looking at the wrong culprit here. Technology tools, in and of themselves, are neither good nor evil, it is WHAT WE DO WITH THEM. Blanket policies will not work. To tighten up cell phone policies on school properties is a bandaid to the problem and not a real solution.

A tech tool, such as a cell (or mobile) phone, can be used as an educational tool in many ways - research on this in the classroom is being done right now. They are ubiquitous, flexible, and feature-rich. How can we ignore that?

To blame an incident based on long-standing racism in a community on the abuse or use of any tech tool is negligent and irresponsible. We need to work together to eradicate the REAL issues at heart here and NOT conveniently blame the use of a technology tool.

My two cents’ worth…

By: Dean Shareski

Dean Shareski — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 21:12:34 +0000

@Staschuk,

Thanks for the comments and certainly are worth digging deeper. The idea of using a cellphone for global collaboration may not be the best tool but in today’s scenarios. However, being able to text to places like twitter and others and receive instant feedback is more a proof of concept at this point. The potential is there and I’d say not far from a reality in today’s simple publishing and connecting environment.

Even the idea of using a cellphone to capture video, audio and sharing it, points to possibilities of collaboration. While we may have better tools, the fact that more students have cellphones than laptops would indicate a reason to pursue these tools. They already have them, let’s leverage them.

As far as data, I’d refer you to Liz Kolb’s work. http://www.cellphonesinlearning.com She’s done a great deal of work in this area and who I would consider an expert.