So at my son's middle school orientation..

[DisneyBlonde]

Hmmm. I think that I agree with the helicopter mom this time.

In many of the classroom incidents that we hear about in the news, someone from the class calls 911 on their cell. What will happen when no one has a cell phone? If a child is abducted from school grounds, there might be a chance of locating them through the cell signal, if the cell phone wasn't in the locker.

I think a better solution is to say that no one may use a cell phone during class, and to confiscate the individual cell phone when that rule is broken. It seems simple enough.

 

[edandcolleen1995]

There is a working phone in ALL classrooms in this school that I posted about.

There are payphones located in the lobby. There is a free phone for students in the guidance office also.

There is zero reason to have a cell phone during school hours. All calls a child needs to make (ie emergency, stuck and needs a ride etc) can be made using the provided phones.

The students can listen to voicemail after school if the parent needs to leave a message. If it is urgent but not an emergency, parents can call the main office and messages can be left for the student when they leave their next class.

If you allow phones, you allow texts, sexmessaging, disruption, potential fights, theft etc. Again this is middle school...

 

[Emmaline Lola]

after columbine, I always thought my dd would have cell phone in her back pack God forbid she needed it in such a situation (I am a worrier ), if she left it on, with the ringer on mute, and was forbidden to touch it unless it was a Columbine situation (please don't let their be another), would she get in trouble then?

she is only 4 so I have time to figure this out, but what about other parents out there who worry about this?

el

 

[krcit]

My kids are not allowed to use their phones on school property. I have no problem with the rule. As long as she has it on her way to school and on her way home to get in touch with me if needed, no problems. The school does have phones in every classroom and phones in the office-although truth be told, she did text me once to drop off her softball gear. An emergency? Not at all and if she got caught she would have to suffer the consequences. To add to the discussion, my niece had an incident in her school where some girls took pics on their phones of a girl in the locker room and forwarded them To me, the idea of that happening to another child is reason enough for no cell phones in school. In their lockers, no problem. In classrooms or locker rooms, nope.

 

[Gina]

My DS's school has a ban on cell phones too, but NO WAY am I willing to send him to school or to the Y or anywhere else without his cell phone. I am pretty much the opposite of a helicopter parent, by nature -- but this is a safety issue. I'm a single parent, I work all day, it's a scary world, and I would NEVER want my son to have to depend on the school or the bus driver or a counselor to provide a phone in case of an emergency.

But (much to the concern of many parents) I got a cell phone for DS when he was 8. I figured that if he had one early on and was taught how and when its usage was appropriate, it would become no big deal to him to even have a cell phone. So far, so good. (He's 13 now.) He knows the consequences of using his phone when and how it shouldn't be used, and he doesn't want to lose his phone.

As far as the argument of "We didn't have cell phones at school and we survived!" goes, that just doesn't seem to fit. Cars didn't used to have seat belts, and many diseases didn't use to have vaccines. But if we now have ways to protect ourselves and our loved ones better, or just provide a little peace of mind, I'm going to make use of those things!

 

[blissventure]

My kids are not allowed to use their phones on school property. I have no problem with the rule. As long as she has it on her way to school and on her way home to get in touch with me if needed, no problems. The school does have phones in every classroom and phones in the office-although truth be told, she did text me once to drop off her softball gear. An emergency? Not at all and if she got caught she would have to suffer the consequences. To add to the discussion, my niece had an incident in her school where some girls took pics on their phones of a girl in the locker room and forwarded them To me, the idea of that happening to another child is reason enough for no cell phones in school. In their lockers, no problem. In classrooms or locker rooms, nope.

Great points. And beyond what you've mentioned, I think it's a terrible idea to teach a kid to deliberately violate school rules (by giving them a cell phone they can hide/sneak when the school rules say otherwise). Obviously, if the rules allow the phone to be in a locker, off, then that's fine. It's just important that kids know moms and dads expect them to comply with the policy, period.
Yea, I know there are parents that are certain their kid won't use the phone except in an "emergency"....but the temptation to talk/text is just too great for the vast majority of kids.
Things tend to go in phases. It will be a great day when helicoptering becomes something that is just not "done" anymore.

 

[Anne34]

Our schools allow the children to have cell phones that are used only after school hours. During the day they must be in their lockers - turned off. If you get caught with your phone during the day it is a detention. (Which happens often cause kids want to text each other!)

None of our schools have pay phones anymore and my kids use the phones to let me know when they need to be picked up from after school activities.

 

[Took]

I agree with our school's "no phones during school" policy. I don't think most kids who have them demonstrate much control about when to use them and when not to nor do they remember to turn them off much of the time. The potential problems created by all students having cell phones in class far outweigh the potential benefit (assuming there really is one) of one responsible student using his or her cell phone to call for help.

I might mention that the niece mentioned in an earlier post, who used her cell phone to tell mom she was okay, did not call for help or prevent any problems (not that the poster indicated the niece did). My point is, the only "good" that came of the niece having the phone is the mom's relief that her daughter was okay. While, of course, that's good to know, the phone call did not avert disaster, nor do I think real disasters are highly likely.



Took

 

[RhondaL]

I teach middle school in central Illinois. We just had our first day of school today! Our policy is off and in their locker. I keep my cell phone off and in my purse during the day and have (many times) let a student use it to call a parent about forgotten lunch money, band instrument, etc. Our office secretaries will not let them call home for "trival" events. I think it is a no win situation because their are valid points for having one versus not having one. I know that my 10 year DD won't be having one.....of course, her room is right down the hall from mine and she wishes she could escape me at school.

 

[Pembo]

When I was in junior high, in the early 80's, we had a school shooting. The school was in lockdown...I didn't know, we were in the gym with the band practicing. The school counselor was shot and the 8th grade gunman apprehended.

Parents were allowed to pick up their children. Most of us stayed at school and "talked it out". They did not bring in counselors, there was no media, our parents didn't freak out.......and I came out of this normal.

Coincendentally, the shooter was released from juvenile hall at the age of 21. His son was in my mom's class years later.

My point - shootings have been around - we didn't have cell phones. The media contributes to all the hype......imho

 

[goofy's friends]

The picture taking and Cyberbullying is enough reason not to have them on on school property. Another reason not mentioned yet is cheating. Texting answers, etc.

 

[Christine]

I don't know how they manage it but both high schools my kids attend/attended (and they are two different ones) have cut the cellphone signal within most of the school. There is only one area in the school that they can access a signal. Cuts down on a lot of problems.

 

[ColoradoMom!!]

Just in case you were wondering, the policy at C*lumbine (I starred it so no one can look me up personally with a search) is that if the teacher hears, sees it, they take it. Otherwise the kids (9th-12th) grade can carry it in their pockets. The signal is not jammed. That would bother me. I am glad my son has his, but it is more so I can text him about change of plans, etc. He checks it at lunch and after school.

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

Maybe you were the one, but it seems like I remember a teacher from that area (in another,similar thread) saying that all the cell phones in use that day actually jammed the system and kept people from being able to get through. I'm sorry, my students will not even be allowed to text during a lockdown or have their phones at all. Thankfully I teach elementary and don't think my kids even have phones yet. We have a phone, intercom, computer, and two walkie talkies (if my para is there) in my room. Plus, in many lockdown situations we have to worry about the possibility of a bomb threat. In that case any wireless device must be shut off in case of accidental detonation.

In the case of an evacuation, I am not going to stop to allow a child to grab a cell phone. My first and only priority is my students' safety, even if that means not being able to reassure the parents right away.

 

[englishteacha]

I teach in a middle school. Phones are to be off during the day. If a student needs to call someone during the day, they can use one of the dozens of phones in the building. We know that kids may "need" them on the way to or from school, so they are only to be off and out of sight during the day. If I see one, I am to confiscate it and the parent needs to come get it. I chaperoned the 6th grade field trip and parents like the one the OP described insisted that their children be not only allowed to have phones with them, but be allowed to USE them whenever they wanted during the trip. To me it's a trust issue. If you do not trust the school and the staff to keep your kid safe on a field trip, then perhaps your child shouldn't attend the trip. The other issue we had was when we went on an outing to a local ski place. A student got hurt (minorly) and all her friends wanted to call her parents. Can you imagine being a mom and having your daughter's 12 year old best friend calling you in hysterics because she fell skiing? You would think the worst! The adults in charge (first aid and the principal) had everything under control.

 

[Handbag Lady]

I might mention that the niece mentioned in an earlier post, who used her cell phone to tell mom she was okay, did not call for help or prevent any problems (not that the poster indicated the niece did). My point is, the only "good" that came of the niece having the phone is the mom's relief that her daughter was okay. While, of course, that's good to know, the phone call did not avert disaster, nor do I think real disasters are highly likely.

Took

And the reassurance of the child that the parent knew where she was physically in the school. Maybe my life example was a bad one because there actually wasn't a gun, but no one knew that at the time. My sister was able to call police but she didn't have to because by then she was watching the footage on TV and saw police were there already.

I'm just thinking that if my child were in that situation, there is NO way I'd just leave it up to the school to tell me what is going on and be able to just wait. We're talking about LAUSD here, so maybe your trust in your school is higher than ours here.

 

[TwinsinCA]

The school does have phones in every classroom

But are the kids allowed to use them to place outbound calls? I have spent countless hours volunteering and I've never seen that happen.

There are reasons during the day when it would be nice to be able to have contact without having to involve the office staff. It is a waste of their time and you run the risk of messages being lost. My kids are 9 and too young for phones IMO. But when they are in middle school or older, I'd like there to be a way to reach each other if need be.

And I don't know what kind of natural disasters you have where you live, but we have earthquakes. There was a minor earthquake (5.5 magnitude) about a year ago and the phones were all jammed. I can only imagine the issues if there were a serious one. Texts can often go through in those kinds of situations when calls cannot. I'd like to have a way to reach my kids directly in such a situation.

 

[babytrees]

Yeah we did. But if we had to, we could call home from a pay phone--they are almost none existent now. And how many times did you experience a lock down during your school days? I know I never heard of that word at all when I was in school.

we had almost as many lockdowns 20 years ago in the same school..the difference?? ours were because there nutsos within blocks of the school...now it's often more precautionary...ie when the school shootings happened 2 years ago 40 miles away our schools were automatically put on lock down.

 

[NotAmused]

I just finished my internship in a 5th grade classroom in bad area of town. Our door was always locked. All phones were required to be in the students' bookbags (which were placed by the teacher's desk) or they could hand them to me in the morning and I'd lock them in my desk drawer until the end of the day so they were safe. If I caught a glimpse of a cell phone after the first bell, it went in my desk until the end of the day.

There is absolutely no reason they need to be using a cell phone during the day. I allowed them to use the classroom phone if they needed to call home and all parents had the classroom's phone number if they needed to call for some reason. Teachers are not allowed to have cell phones out so why should students?

I am only 22 so I am part of the texting generation, but I have never texted during class. I know some parents may argue that it is "incase of an emergency", but the kids don't always have the same idea. To the kids, it's freedom to go into the bathroom and text friends gossip or answers.
It may make me unpopular with some students/parents, but I will always have a strict no cell phone policy in my classroom.

 

[shortbun]

Goodness, how in the world did children survive 20 years ago with no cell phones attached to their ear...or fingers?

I feel sorry for the schools having to deal with cell phone issues.

LOL!! Watch out, someone will call you an old foggy!!! lol!!! "I remember when I was a kid, we walked miles through the snow with no boots and our shoes dried by the coal furnace while we sat shivering, barefoot in the classroom of a two room schoolhouse."