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A cacophony of ringing cell phones is annoying anywhere, but
in the classroom it's an unacceptable distraction. A decade ago,
it would have been an unheard-of distraction, as well. Few adults
owned or used cellular phones then, and even fewer children.
But times have changed. As the prices of cell phones fall, their
use is growing, especially among teenagers. Increasingly, school
boards are having to decide how to deal with students who bring
these ubiquitous communication devices to school.
It might seem like a no-brainer to ban student use of cell phones
in schools, but few policy decisions are that clear-cut. The necessity
for banning another electronic communication device -- the pager
-- has been widely understood and accepted. Cell phone bans, however,
present a conundrum: During the Columbine shootings, students
were able to call for help on their cell phones, drawing dramatic
attention to the safety aspects of cell phones.
Inexpensive equipment and low-cost family service plans have
made cell phones "affordable to just about anyone," says Lisa
Ihde, manager of wireless education programs at the Cellular Telecommunications
Industry Association in Washington, D.C. Parents want the phones,
says Ihde, to communicate with their children throughout the day.
The association doesn't know how many of the phones that parents
buy go to their children, but anecdotally, cell phone use by teens
seems to be on the rise.
School boards can find themselves at odds with parents or their
communities when forming policies about student cell phones, despite
the conviction held by many educators that student cell phones
do not belong in school. "Cell phones ringing during a class would
be very distracting to the learning environment," says Mary Beth
King, vice president of the Plano, Texas, school board. "We are
committed to maintaining the sanctity of the classroom."
Even among those who endorse cell phone restrictions, there
is disagreement. Some educators believe only a total ban will
prevent disruptions. Others argue that bans don't teach children
to use technology like cell phones responsibly.
Pagers versus cell phones
In the early 1990s, electronic paging devices or pagers became
synonymous with drug dealers. Although pagers had other, more
benign uses, schools and state legislatures quickly passed policies
and laws forbidding their use in schools, often with severe penalties
attached.
According to the Education Commission on the States, 16 states
have passed laws that ban student possession of pagers in schools.
Of those states, five mention only pagers. The other states include
cellular phones and other electronic devices. All the laws allow
for school boards or principals to make exceptions, some for medical
emergencies.
The Montgomery County (Md.) School Board passed a ban on electronic
communication devices five years ago to comply with Maryland's
regulations. For the first offense, principals could use their
discretion for punishment. The second offense required principals
to report the incident to the police. At the time, no one spoke
out against the ban, according to board member Bea Gordon, because
"pagers were the issue," she says.
It was a different story when parents and students found out
the ban covered cell phones as well. "We are hearing a great deal
from parents who believe [the phones are] a part of modern-day
life and students should be able to use them," says Gordon, whose
district is in an affluent suburb of Washington, D.C. "We are
approaching that point where we will have to make a distinction
between pagers and cell phones."
Montgomery County's state legislature tried to do exactly that
recently by proposing Maryland's law be amended to allow cell
phones in schools. That effort failed, Gordon says, with lawmakers
from large, urban areas on one side and rural lawmakers on the
other. "Those from rural districts didn't see the need for cell
phones," she says.
Community support
Some school boards have faced dissenting parents over the ban,
while others have earned community support. The Plano Independent
School District has banned electronic communication devices since
1995. Board vice president King says the board put the policy
in place before many students had access to cell phones or pagers.
"Parents have been very understanding about the policy and supportive
of [there being] no disruptions in student learning," says King.
"We are also very good about facilitating communication, should
a parent need to reach the child during the school day."
In Franklin, Wis., the school board first banned pagers, then
broadened the policy to include two-way electronic communication
devices. Dave Szychlinski, president of the Franklin School Board,
says the broad language was necessary because it could include
up-and-coming technology, such as handheld computers like Palm
Pilots. "Students functioned well before cell phones," says Szychlinski.
"They're not necessary for students in their daily activities."
Before the Cobb County (Ga.) School Board banned pagers and
cell phones in 1997, teachers complained that students interrupted
class when they forgot to turn off their beepers or ringers. Also,
students talked on the phones between classes.
Board member Curt Johnston says parents were unhappy at first,
but became used to the rule. On the other hand, students complained
that they were being punished for the misbehavior of only a few
students, a point he sees as valid. "I would prefer to confiscate
devices and charge in-school suspensions for in-school users or
disrupters on a case-by-case basis," says Johnston, "but not ban
possession by students who use them responsibly."
Some schools do have policies that are less restrictive than
a total ban. At the Minuteman Regional Vocational Technical School
District, near Boston, the policy prohibits using electronic devices
in a way that disrupts the educational process. It's acceptable
to have cell phones and pagers on silent mode, as long as the
students don't place or answer calls during class. A small number
of students use their phones or pagers inappropriately, says Minuteman
School Committee member Paul Schlichtman. When that happens, the
principal confiscates the device, and it is returned when the
student's parent comes to school to retrieve it.
The physical size of a school district could be a deciding factor
in whether to allow students to carry their phones in school,
says Schlichtman. At Minuteman, some students live more than an
hour from school. When these students are involved in after-school
activities, using a cell phone rather than a pay phone to call
home is less expensive and more convenient.
However, at city schools such as Madison Park Technical-Vocational
High School in Boston, where Schlichtman works, students don't
travel long distances. The school is a block from a rapid transit
stop and within two blocks of several major bus lines. Madison
has a ban on carrying electronic devices on campus. In practice,
says Schlichtman, students at both districts have cell phones.
Only when they are careless, by leaving the ringers on or displaying
the devices to others, are they caught.
Some kind of restriction on cell phones in school is necessary,
says Schlichtman, who believes the phones do not add any educational
value to the schools and can be serious distractions. "High school
students are social animals," says Schlichtman. "A cell phone
or pager can very easily become the focal point of a student's
day. A page could signal a meeting at the lavatory, a call to
skip fourth-period class in favor of a trip to Dunkin' Donuts,
or any other message that distracts from teaching and learning."
Legislating the future?
Pennsylvania state law prohibits students from carrying pagers
on campus. It does not mention cell phones or other electronic
devices. The Pennsylvania School Boards Association (PSBA) recently
added a ban on cell phones and laser pointers to its model policy.
Sharon Fissel, director of policy services for PSBA, says association
officials spoke with a number of Pennsylvania school districts
that already had cell phone bans in place before forming the policy.
Fissel did hear from educators and others who believed cell
phones could be a valuable safety tool for students. However,
she says, most districts made convincing arguments that any benefit
of cell phones was overridden by the disruption they caused.
After PSBA adopted the ban, many school boards in Pennsylvania
moved to adopt similar policies, including the Allentown School
Board. But Allentown board member Dick Nepon cast a dissenting
vote. He advocates regulating cell phones rather than an outright
ban. "I believe it is our job to teach people how to use technology
effectively," says Nepon. "It's not our job to make administration's
task easier at the expense of slowing technology's intrusion into
public school life." A ban on cell phones sends a message to students
that they can't be trusted to control themselves, a message that
schools should avoid, he says.
After all, says Nepon, technology continues to bring changes.
In the future, schools might even supply students with personal
digital assistants that will function as textbook, calculator,
and Internet browser combined -- as well as cell phone and pager
and "probably things we haven't dreamed up yet," he says. "It
makes no sense, to me, to limit the future, to attempt to legislate
a hold on change."
Kathleen Vail
is an associate editor of Electronic School.
SAMPLE CELL PHONE POLICIES
Here are some excerpts from school board policies on cell phones
and pagers. Use the web links to view the complete policies of
districts that put their policies online.
Plano Independent
School District
"A paging device is a telecommunications
device that emits an audible signal, vibrates, displays a message,
or otherwise summons or delivers a communication to the possessor.
The board may adopt a policy prohibiting students from possessing
paging devices while on school property or while attending school-sponsored
or school-related activities on or off school property."
Moline School District 40, Moline, Ill.
"Prohibited student
conduct: Disciplinary action may be taken against any student
guilty of gross disobedience or misconduct, including, but not
limited to, the following: using or possessing electronic signaling
and cellular radio-telecommunications devices, unless authorized
and approved by the building principal. Electronic signaling devices
include pocket -- and all similar -- electronic paging devices."
Ferguson-Florissant School District, Florissant, Mo.
"Pagers,
laser pointers, cell phones, or other electronic devices not part
of the instructional program will not be allowed in school. They
will be confiscated and returned only to a parent or guardian."
Cobb
County Public Schools, Cobb County, Ga.
"Students
are not allowed to use, wear, possess or store in their locker:
cellular telephones, communication beepers, other electronic communication
devices, including all 'look alikes,' at school during the regular
school day or at school-sponsored events. Any student found in
violation of this policy shall be subject to in-school suspension."
Montgomery
County Public Schools, Montgomery County, Md.
"Possession
of portable pager on public school property. In this section the
following words have the meanings indicated: 'Portable pager'
means any device carried, worn, or transported by an individual
to receive or communicate messages. 'Public school property' means
the grounds of any public school.
"Except as provided ..., an individual may not possess a portable
pager on public school property. This section does not apply to:
handicapped students using portable pagers for medical reasons;
law enforcement officers; visitors on public school property for
an authorized program, meeting, or function; faculty or staff
members employed by a county board; members of any volunteer fire
department, ambulance company, or rescue squad, who are designated
to possess a portable pager on public school property by the chief
of the volunteer fire department, ambulance company, or rescue
squad, and the school principal; and students whose portable pagers
are contained in vehicles that are on public school property and
are not found to be connected with criminal activity."
Allentown
School District, Allentown, Pa.
"The possession
of beepers, pagers or other electronic communication devices by
school district employees where supportive of the general welfare
and the educational program of the school is endorsed. The possession
of beepers/pagers/electronic communication devices by students
has been found to be not only disruptive but, in many instances,
contributory to illegal purposes, such as alcohol and other drug
abuse."
Pennsylvania School Boards Association policy guides for
Pennsylvania school districts:
"The board prohibits possession
of laser pointers and attachments, cellular telephones, and telephone
paging devices by students on school grounds, on buses and other
vehicles provided by the district, and at school-sponsored events.
"This prohibition does not apply in the following cases, provided
that the building principal approves in advance of the presence
of a telephone pager: a student who is a member of a volunteer
fire company, ambulance or rescue squad; or a student who has
a need for a telephone pager due to the medical condition of an
immediate family member.
"Unauthorized possession of laser pointers, cellular telephones,
and telephone paging devices shall result in confiscation of the
item by school personnel."
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