Phone Usage in Schools: A Given Luxury, or a Deterrent from Learning?

Phone Usage in Schools: A Given Luxury, or a Deterrent from Learning?

As humans progress both psychologically and physically, technology progresses just as fast, or perhaps even faster. Technology has advanced so far as to allow people to talk to a family member, coworker, or even a complete stranger at the touch of a couple of buttons. We can now have a cellular phone and media player in one, four ounce device that fits in the palm of our hands. However, with the progression of media devices comes the danger of teenagers possessing such devices. The threat of teenagers possessing a device capable of communication and browsing the internet is not one to be taken lightly, but one shouldn’t take on this dilemma like they would a nuclear threat. Smartphones being allowed in schools should be permitted, however, certain precautions should be taken.

Phones have come a long way from their beginnings. When the first phone was developed, a mere phone call took up to ten minutes just to connect. The calls made on this phone would go through a system of connections where the caller would have to state who they were calling and where the person lived. It would be many years later that a telephone would be created that made use of a dial, which made calling easier. In 1963, the first pushbutton telephone was distributed by the company, Bell Telephone. In 1983, the first cellular device, the Motorola DynaTAC 8000X, was created, which took the world by storm. Soon later, miniature computers were being put in these devices, allowing the user to browse parts of the web while on their cellular device. Yet we wouldn’t see a product that allowed us to browse the web, communicate with others, and let us store music and run apps, until 2007. (ht...

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...ld also be used to browse inappropriate sites. Not all students own smart phones or even cell phones, so allowing phones in schools would not necessarily be for the common good, as not all students would be able to use this resource and privilege.

Smartphones are becoming useful devices, with their ability to surf the web, measure distances by a picture, determine if a surface is level, or even use a graphing calculator. The permission to use such devices as a learning advantage, would allow for students to achieve higher grades, be more likely to get into a good college, and potentially get a degree and graduate. As long as the smartphone user is using it for the proper and appropriate purpose, smartphones should be allowed in school. The authorization for students to use smart phones would promote a better future for the next generation of American citizens.