Samuy Turnblom
Jennifer Courtney
English 2010
7/14/12
Should cellphone use be allowed in school?
Cellphones should not be allowed in school because it prevents studentsfrom focusing on what they are meant to be doing.Utilizing cellphones while in some classes can lead to accidents and a lack of understanding instructions. Although cellphones have many benefits; such as fast communication, helping people to find places when they are lost, help people learn new things, and also prevent boredom; they also distract students from learning new and amazing things.
Cellphonesare useful when people know how to use them correctly.They can be usedto contact assistance in case of an emergency.They can also be used to keep you occupied while otherwise stuck in an unwanted stasis, for instance, when having to wait for doctor’sappointment.You can spend the time catching up on news, making a grocery list, or keeping children occupied by allowing them to watch a movie or play video games on the device. You can easily keep in touch with friends and family when planning a daily outing or event. They can also be used to help us find directions to locations that have confusing addresses or are in an area of town not often traveled.
Unfortunately, cellphones benefits are also unbeneficial when used at inappropriate times and instances; for example, when one of them is being used while in a classroom where you’re supposed to be paying attention to the instructions given, and learning. Verjeana M. Jacobs chairman Board of Educator said, “We know for a fact that the use of cellphones on school property around this country has led to a number of problems around safety." He also said that students used their cellphones to record fights in school and other inappropriate activities. Even if policy says students aren’t allowed to use their cellphones while in class, it is very difficult to enforce. Students are very sneaky with hiding what they’re doing from others. They memorize the locations of each letter on their cell phones keyboard and can send messages back and forth to each other with only quick glances at their screen to read a response, since text messages can be sent without ever looking at the device being used. They act like they aren’t doing anything suspicious, and appear to be paying attention to class, but other students can hear the “Clickity Clack” of their cell phone buttons being pressed repeatedly.
In some schools, they have the policies that prevent studentsfrom bringing in cellphones or any other electronic device that may be a distraction from class to students. Other school’s policies allow the students bring their cellphone into class,but require them to be turned off while they are in class. This option unfortunately only helps to prevent students that are most likely already obeying the rules from using their devices. It doesn’t help to prevent students that are obsessed, or addicted to their devices, from using them. Since cellphones are built with a vibrate function students are able to use them while reducing the noise being made by them.
While I was stopped at a red light on my way home I saw a young boy, who was probably eleven or twelve years old walking across the street and texting, he wasn’t paying attention to his surroundings and could have gotten hit by a car.The problem is that the technology is too modern and popular; kids that don’t have them are looked down on while those that do are part of the “cool kids,” or in the “in crowd.” Because of this, parents will go out and buy their kids a phone so that they can also be cool. They might not stop to think about the down sides to allowing their kids to have cell phones, placing them, unknowingly, in danger.
Let’slookat teenagers, who are drivers and cellphone users. They act as if they cannot live without their cellphone for even twenty minutes. When they are in their car they place their cellphone close by either on the dash board or in the center console, where it will be within easy reach. Some studies have found that teens are at higher risk of getting into accidents caused by cell phone use while driving, resulting in higher insurance costs. It is not hard for teens to put their phone away while they are driving. They just need to be taught and reminded that safety is most important on the road, and that it should be their only priority while driving.
Cellphones shouldn’t be allowed in school. Cellphonescause distractions to children and teens becausetheir minds are too preoccupied with thoughts of their friends and what they are doing. Even when they already know the answer, they’re in class learning just like they should be.Cellphones may cause damage to DNA and may also cause benign brain tumors in children especially for middle school students, "We don't know very much about the health effects of cellphone use on kids, but there is speculation," said Henry Lai, a bioengineering professor at the University of Washington. Parents should think twice before allowing their kids to use cellphones. If people think that it is not going to cause any problems because it’s just a piece electronic equipment,they should think again. The outside pieces may just be plastic composites and glasses, but the inside components have many unexpected elements, like lithium a very toxic material that is used in the battery, that might cause your kid eyes or brain to become damaged just as professor Lai said. Middle school children have young skulls the radiation can affect them more easily and it might also cause unforeseen long term effects.
The researcher also found that the human brain has the same functions as cellphone they turn on and off. "The increases were significantly correlated with the estimated electromagnetic field amplitudes, both for absolute metabolism and normalized metabolism," the authors of the Study indicates cellphones affect activity in a part of the brain. They also said, "These results provide evidence that the human brain is sensitive to the effects of . . . acute cellphone exposures." Cellphonesare not safe. Not only can they be bad for the brain but they can also cause hearing loss because right now the technology is so modern, they don’t need to hold the phone; they just insert an earpiece into their ear and can then hear everything. If the cellphones causes so many problems, why do so many people still use them so frequently? I surmise that it is because some people cannot live without their electronics orcellphones, especially teenagers.
Even though cell phones have many useful properties, the possible downsides that are associated with them are too great to allow them in schools. If the children’s parents aren’t going to educate them on proper cell phone use and etiquette, then it is the responsibility of the education system to step in. They may not have the right to stop children from owning them, but they can at least help to prevent the possible health problems and the un-educational distractions that come from allowing these devices on school premises.