Digital Age Dilemma

Banning Cell Phones Isn’t the Right Solution

Digital Age Dilemma

Emily Wilkinson, Staff Writer

Welcome to the digital age where the one thing everyone has in common is the cell phone in their pocket. Scituate High School students are no exception. The advantages and disadvantages of cell phones in the classroom have been heavily debated, especially in recent months as news of the proposed cell phone policy for next year has surfaced. Cell phone use will be banned in the classroom, including study halls, and students are expected to place their phone into “phone cubbies,” which will be installed in every classroom. The reason behind this?  According to SHS Principal, Mr. Wargo, “We need to pull back. It’s more of a distraction than we thought it would be.” Cell phones are not the source of student distraction. In elementary school, it was doodling. In middle school, it was passing notes. In high school, it’s cell phones. Distraction has become a student’s best friend, and banning cell phones won’t change that.

Whether it be doodling, hair-twirling, dozing off, counting the clock, or simply talking to the person next to you, there is no doubting student distraction is present in the classroom. Cell phones are just 21st-century students’ distraction of choice. Education should not be a waiting game; however, banning cell phones isn’t the solution. Cell phones are not the problem; the problem is the lack of student engagement in learning. Reshaping teaching styles to incorporate student participation, rather than just talking at them, will allow students the chance to truly experience their education. It is time to stop passing the blame. Instead, start reaching the root of the problem. It is a generational shift in student learning that teachers of the 21st-century must adapt to. There must be a connection made between students and their teachers for the learning experience to be most effective.

In a balanced classroom, there should be both “teacher time” and “student time.” If a student continues to show signs of disengagement, blatantly disrespecting the teacher through cell phone use (or any other form of student distraction) during instruction time, it is more a reflection of the student’s character than anything else. In an article for the Boston Globe, “Cell phones in school: a teaching tool or distraction,” Joe Blatt, the faculty director of the Technology, Innovation, and Education Program of Harvard Graduate School of Education, commented that “the kind of learning that is possible for kids using these devices — when properly supported and managed by teachers who make the best use of them — can be powerful learning.” During “student time,” students should be expected to do the assigned work; however, it is up to the student to stay on task. It is time to stop monitoring students’ work ethic and to start embracing their independence. It is their education, and students should decide for themselves how they utilize it. The “babysitting” needs to stop.

Although cell phones have proved to be a source of distraction, Wargo’s plan to “restrict cell phones and see the right device” should not be the effective plan of action. Wargo commented, “We’re hoping to see 100% commitment to this.” There will never be “100% commitment” to this. In an article from The Atlantic, “Do Cell Phones Belong in Schools?” a survey showed that “in schools that ban cell phones entirely, the percentage was still a shocking 58%” for students who still sent or received texts in class, despite the ban. Student response to the ban on cell phones will not be a happy one.

In the digital age, where information is just a Google search away, cell phones should be embraced, not banned. If SHS can work to use cell phones to the advantage of education, the potential pros will outweigh any cons. Cell phones are not the only source to blame for student disengagement in class. Education must adapt to the changing dynamics of student interaction, and that adaptation should not start with banning cell phones.