Parents Demand NYC Schools End Phone Ban

[proud2BlibKansan]

Parents Demand NYC Schools End Phone Ban

By NAHAL TOOSI, Associated Press Writer Fri May 5, 8:03 PM ET

NEW YORK - A growing number of parents, teachers and city lawmakers are demanding that the New York City school system reverse its longtime ban on students' cell phones inside school buildings.

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On Friday, a handful of City Council members and parent activists announced a series of upcoming events aimed at pressuring the education department to change the policy.

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"Quite simply, this is a safety issue," James said. "It's a safety issue that we have to resolve."

School officials say they're skeptical that they can count on students to keep the phones off. They also say phone can be used for nefarious purposes — cheating on tests, or taking inappropriate pictures in locker rooms, for instance.

more . . .

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060506/ap_on_hi_te/school_cell_phones

[mahatmakanejeeves]

1. I don't mean to be a fuddy-duddy, but

didn't kids manage to stay reasonably safe in schools before cellphones were invented?

[valerief]

4. That's what I was thinking. What is wrong with these people? n/t

[proud2BlibKansan]

7. Yes they did

Cell phones are just a distraction in school. Kids don't need them there.

[TahitiNut]

20. GMTA. It's insane. I'm now seeing 12-year-olds on bicycles ...

... talking on their cellphones while riding the streets in traffic. How nucking futs does it have to get? :eyes:

[Darth_Kitten]

63. their kid gets killed in traffic.....

and then the dimbulb parents MAY get a clue...and then go on Larry King Live warning us of the dangers of giving kids cellphones/bikes/every gadget available on the market and NOT caring to teach them responsibility. :eyes:

I fear for this world. :(

[madaboutharry]

2. There are simple solutions to this.

First, they can ban picture phones. Second, they can collect cell phones and place them on the teachers' desks during exams and quizzes. Third, they can place a ban on incoming calls. It is apparent that no one wants to be bothered thinking this out.

[mdmc]

6. cell phone make kids less safe

If you own a "razor", some thugs will beat you silly and take it from you. IPODS and cell phone cause conflict in city schools, and should not be brought to school.
If the kids were mature enough to use the phone only for emergencies, the school wouldn't need to ban them.
Since the kids can't seem to own phones without playing with them at school, they need to be banned.

[proud2BlibKansan]

8. Why should the school have to mess with them?

It shouldn't be the school's responsibility to babysit the cell phones. Besides, I guarantee they will be stolen if left on a teacher's desk. That is a really bad idea. So yes, I do think the schools have thought this out.

[madaboutharry]

11. These are good points, but

recently students trapped in a school due to a landslide were located because students were able to make calls out on cell phones. There are arguments both ways.

[proud2BlibKansan]

27. I have taught for almost 30 years

and I can't think of one time where kids needed cell phones at school to save their lives. That landslide risk is rather slim. LOL

[jmowreader]

54. And a landslide in Brooklyn is going to come from where?

Okay, we'll compromise.

All New York City schools that are against geologically-unstable formations that pose a landslide hazard will be issued one of those old-timey cell phones that's a foot and a half long for each classroom.

The rest of the schools in New York will maintain the cell phone ban.

[cherokeeprogressive]

16. Collect the cell phones?

Oh yeah, I can see it now: Little Johnny was strip-searched today before a test, says a lawyer, speaking for Johnny's parents. It's alleged that his female teacher improperly fondled him during the search. Film at eleven!

Place a ban on incoming calls? How? Any kid with half a brain would simply put their phone on silent, or vibrate.

To think that ANY teenage kid in this day and age would obey a rule they disagree with, or that limits their "freedom", is folly, imho.

[madaboutharry]

24. My kids go to a school where the

students are allowed to have cell phones, but they have to be off during the day and they are only allowed to use them after the bell rings at the end of the day. It is a non-issue and there are no problems. I think we need to give kids more credit.

[phylny]

33. My kids go to school where they're allowed to have their cell phones

in school and can use them at lunch. They manage fine.

[seleff]

42. I teach in a high school district where phones are allowed but must be off

The kids test me every day. We had it under control the beginning of the year, but they keep pushing the limit. It is a waste of my time to call home to complain and/ot to write referrrals. My daughter goes to another school in the district where things are under control. She forgot to turn her phone off twice this year, both times the phone was confiscated to the front office and my wife had to leave work and pick it up. I can't reach parents most of the time where I teach...A lower income area where phones are frequently disconnected. meanwhile, I have constant interruption to discipline students for...talking while I'm teaching, using their cell phone, listening to CD players or Ipods, wearing hats, leaving class without permission, asking for hall passes to the restroom (sometimes to visit another class or their "cousin" while their at it) because they drink minute maid drinks all day. Meanwhile their test scores are stuck in the cellar and their math skills are abysmal. The cell phones are useful means to receive messages from parents, if turned off during class. We are trying a new discipline plan schoolwide. Some signs that there may be improvements

[cherokeeprogressive]

67. "must be off"--I teach in an ADULT SCHOOL and get interrupted

EVERY FIVE MINUTES. I've even had the experience of a father calling home during my lecture (I teach computer applications like Access, Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Web Design etc) while he was SITTING RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME. His first words were "Hi honey, I was just calling to see how you were doing..." I stopped lecturing, and the class went silent except for HIM. Five minutes passed before he noticed that he was the center of attention. He hung up his phone, and the next day, had the FUCKING NERVE to complain to my Principal that he was embarrassed by me in my class.

Kids? They'll push the limits, test your resolve, lie, cheat, and steal. I know because I also teach at the district's "Continuation School", where the punks, thieves, pregnant teens, and cheaters get sent.

Cell phones should be banned in all schools. If I had the money, I'd donate it to my school district so they could have METAL DETECTORS installed in the entrances to the school.

Anyone who thinks kids SHOULD have cell phones because "they can be responsible" should spend a WEEK in a high school class of the kind I teach.

Goodness.

[Sgent]

31. None of those are reasonable options

because they are not cost neutral.

They will either take instruction time away from the class, or require hiring of additional personel to perform them.

I don't know if they still have lockers -- but one option would be to confiscate any cell phone not in a locker during school hours.

[WinkyDink]

32. No, no, no. As a former teacher, let me say that this "collection" idea is

asking for teacher-student confrontations.

[ldf]

48. thinking this one out?

well, duh!

they are there to learn, not to chat on cell phones.

cell phones are toys to them. they have absolutely nothing to say THAT important. it can wait until after hours. and yes, you read me right, i am THAT presumptious.

if parents, during an emergency, need to communicate, they can call the school office.

it's a bunch of crap. people wanting to be confrontational just because they want to be confrontational.

bloomberg is right on this one, and has my full support (the sorry dem turned repub just so he could run for mayor POS).

[donco6]

53. BWAAHAHAHA!

Sorry, just came out.

Ban picture phones. So, do we have to pat kids down as they enter the building? That'll go over big with parents, I bet.

Collect cell phones on the teacher's desk. Again, you think the kids are just going to give them up voluntarily? Hardly. So more searches?

Ban on incoming calls. How does that work exactly? With vibrates and texting, you can't even tell they're getting a message.

It's not at all that simple.

[Darth_Kitten]

64. No, just ban them, period.

Why should we always have to cater to people and their whims?

If I were a teacher I'd bring a large hammer to school, kid's cell phone goes off, bring it here.....SMASH. End of story. Kid needs to explain to his parents why he was being an idiot in class. Teacher doesn't have to be bothered doing the parents' job.

[meisje]

72. Yes, you are a genius

:eyes:

[ulysses]

3. I quite agree! cell phones are crucial to the safety of society.

I don't know how anyone reached adulthood without them back in the olden days.

:eyes:

[proud2BlibKansan]

9. I guess I am lucky to be alive.

:hi:

[Darth_Kitten]

65. I remember walking 40 miles in a blizzard to find a phone....

kids are lucky nowadays. :D

[rocktivity]

5. Punish the guilty.

A cell phone that rings or gets used in class gets consficated. Students who leave the classroom for a bathroom break etc. must leave their cell phones behind. Let the responsible cell phone users keep theirs. Ipods should only be permitted at lunchtime (that when we played our Walkmans and boom boxes and nobody minded). And if parents need to reach their kids during class time (the only possible reason why a schoolkid would need a cellphone in the first place), let them call the school!

:headbang:
rocknation

[proud2BlibKansan]

10. They will just get stolen

Leave them at home and they won't disappear.

[WinkyDink]

35. YOU confiscate them, Kimosabe! And collect each time a kid goes to the

lav? Disruption, much?
Your conception of the classroom, from a teacher's viewpoint, is a tad Pollyanna-ish!

[immoderate]

12. Yeah, teachers don't have enough to do.

I remember when the school made me one of the baseball cap police. I didn't really care what was on their head, I was more concerned with what was in it.

I would volunteer to teach a class called "How to Walk Without a Cell Phone in Your Ear." Kids don't need cell phones during the school day. Give 'em a fucking yo-yo.

--IMM

[Mythsaje]

13. I don't tend to approve of blanket bans of anything...

And, yes, I went to school long before cell phones. But, then again, when I was in school we didn't have to deal with things like school shootings, terrorist threats, and whatever other unforeseen disasters that might arise in these uncertain times. If the technology exists to make communication with their children easier, parents have a right to lobby for rule changes.

In those instances it proves to be a problem, discipline the kids that cause the problem. I'm damn sick of the "penalize them all" option so many people (even here) seem to think is just fine. It's not.

[acmavm]

17. Why is not allowing cell phone for kids in school a penalty? Why is

it that everytime someone doesn't get what they want it's 'whaaaa I'm being abused' time?

Sometimes the answer is just NO. Something that apparently way too many Americans are just too insensitive, or even too stupid to understand.

[Mythsaje]

18. Why is it that freedom only applies

to the things "WE" approve of? It's okay to restrict freedom if it's not OUR ox being gored?

Hypocritical.

[acmavm]

25. I don't approve or disapprove of cell phones. Personally I just don't give

a damn. But I am tired of whiney asses who think that the have the right to be accommodated in each and every situation, no matter how ridiculous it is. They're in school for a reason and it ain't to use the phones.

Lord forbid that they should learn that not every place or situation calls for them to be able to instantly 'reach out and touch someone'.

[Mythsaje]

26. They shouldn't be using them on the school's time...

agreed. If they do, they should be disciplined.

That's as far as I'll go. Otherwise they should be left alone.

[BlackVelvet04]

21. thank you, thank you, thank you

"I'm damn sick of the "penalize them all" option so many people (even here) seem to think is just fine. It's not."

[TahitiNut]

22. "When I was in school ..."

... there were bomb threats, zip-guns, and switch-blades. The delusion that in some rosy, utopian past that such 'dangers' didn't exist is pure hogwash. I was in grade school from 1948-61, and my parents and uncles had the same thing. What we didn't have is cameras and microphones in the face of every bystander with news helcopters overhead and a bored, thrill-seeking public feeding on every tear like hydrophiles. Are kids being increasingly concentrated in 'factory method' megaschools with greater and greater student-to-adult ratios? Ubetcha. The notion that everyone went to school with George Bailey and Mary Hatch is nonsense.

[Mythsaje]

23. What does this have to do with the question at hand?

Zip guns and switchblades don't even compare to what happened at Columbine and elsewhere.

Apples, meet oranges.

When I was in high school, guys handled their differences with their fists. And this was a hell of a lot later than when you were in high school. What changed?

[progressivebydesign]

30. Phones cause MUCH more trouble than their worth at school.

The issue schools have in relation to emergencies, is that kids on phones start calling their parents during any type of crisis (minor or otherwise), then every single control the school has in place to keep the kids safe, are out the window. The parents arrive to pick the kid up, the kid should remain in lockdown, or kids are now unaccounted for as they arranged to meet the parent off campus. There are emergency phones available for use during a crisis. No lives are going to be saved by having cell phones on the students, but probably lost.

You should probably talk with a teacher or admin. to grasp how badly the phones disrupt school.

My daughter's teachers tell me that they hate that they are forced by law to allow cell phones at school, because of columbine, because they cause more danger than good at school.

[electron_blue]

14. It's easier to enforce a ban on all cell phones than to enforce

confiscating "bothersome" cell phones. With the former ban - it's not personal. With the latter, it looks like punishment to the person with the cell phone and will lead to more confrontations between teachers and students. Inevitably, with the latter, some students will only get "warnings" while others will lose them right away. It's just one more layer of crap for teachers to deal with.

[dapper]

15. No Cell Phones!

If I was at a movie theater, I'd expect the other people in the theater to be polite and have those powered off or atleast silent. If I went to church :-) I would expeect my fellow parishoners have their cell phones off...or silent.

In NY, there is a ban while driving yet I saw so many who ignored the law. One driver ran down a buddy of mine on his Motorcycle because they did not pay attention while on their cell phone. Another girl hit the back of my car- while on the cell phone- on the way back from the mall because in my rear view mirror, she had a scarf or something layed out in her arms as she must have been describing it to her friend on the other end...

I'm not against Cell phones, I think they come in handy but obviously rules need to be put in place because people are not being very responsible while operating the phone.

I believe we had a ban on Sony Walkmen when I was graduating high school.

Dap

[Crowdance]

19. 9-11 changed everything

That's when all of my kids got cellphones. It was horrible that day being in Manhattan and unable to talk to my kids. I couldn't get out of the city because everything was shut down, and we didn't know for sure that the carnage had ended. I wanted so much to tell my kids that I loved them one last time, while we waited to see if Times Square, where I worked and the most visited spot on the planet, would be next. I've heard so many stories about those trapped in the burning towers calling their loved ones one last time. Because it's available, I want to make sure I can reach my kids at all times.

It's true that we grew up safely without those phones. But everything is different now.

[proud2BlibKansan]

28. I thought I had heard the cell towers were out of commission on 9/11

in NYC. After the buildings fell, I remember hearing stories of people trying to contact loved ones and lines at pay phones because cell phones didn't work.

[Crowdance]

59. They were out for a while in NYC, but not on Long Island, where my kids

were. It was tough even getting a land line, but by about 10:30 we were able to call out.

[dysfunctional press]

50. everything isn't different.

the only thing that 9/11 changed is that there will never be another hijacking of an airliner in this country.

any other "changes" are the result of the bush cabal's using 9/11 as an excuse to erode freedoms and instill a sense of fear in the populace.

for the vast majority of us, virtually nothing about our day-to-day lives has changed an iota.

[Crowdance]

60. For those of us in NY, and many in DC, everything DID change

We experienced the terror directly. I am completely different, valuing different things in my life, as a result of this attack. And it ain't about fear; it's about love.

I hope you never do experience a life change in the same way that I did.

Here's to no more personal transformation via terror.

[progressivebydesign]

29. As a high school parent, I support a ban on cell phones in school.

They are NOT saving anyone's lives.. they are disrupting school. Only non-parents or non-teachers wouldn't know that the majority of the time, the phones are relaying text messages and pix all day long during school.

AND.. when some idiot teen called in a "bomb threat", all the kids called their parents, and suddenly the school was overrun with parents waiting in long lines of cars demanding to have their high school kids picked up.

As long as the school has a way for teachers to call for help in a classroom there is no reason for kids to have cell phones in class. It's ridiculous.

[proud2BlibKansan]

38. Agreed

[yasmina27]

34. I got one for my 10 yo daughter

Before I get flamed, let me explain. Back at Christmas, she asked me when she could have her own cell phone. I said "In your dreams". One week before her birthday, the 10 yo girl in OK (I think - maybe KS) was abducted and killed - & he was going to eat her. Sorry, if she had had a way to communicate, maybe she would still be with us.

I bought my dd a Firefly phone. It has total parental control. She can only call and receive calls from numbers that I have programmed in (and password protected). It has one-touch dial to 911. No text messaging, no pics. It has given me great peace of mind.

So the week after her birthday, they go back to school after spring break. The principal announces that cell phones are NOT allowed in school. As a teacher, I can appreciate the rule - burt DAMMIT - I bought the phone for various kinds of emergencies!

I'm just holding my breath - there's only a few weeks of school left, it's not worth the fight right now. She goes to the intermediate school next year - I'll take the battle there if necessary.

She is a very responsible girl. I could have gotten her a regular phone and not had any problems, but I figured why take a chance on the imminent raging hormones? :)

Now her 8yo space cadet sister is a different story for a different day - LOL!

[yankeedem]

36. I actually am a teacher

Though of young adults. People say they want to keep in touch with their family for "emergencies", the only problem is that some abuse it, and there are 10 emergencies every day, ranging from "where did you put the milk" to "did I tell you what I was going to cook for dinner tonight".

I don't hear many ringers, but when students are leaving the room every 20 minutes to take that "important" phone call, it does disrupt the class. If it's an "emergency", then call the school switchboard and have the student paged.

The real impact on the class is just having the cell phone present- I have to constantly tell these little darlings to stop playing with them, text messaging, changing the settings, looking at the photos stored, etc.. I cannot teach if I am constantly having to deal with these contraptions. They are an unnecessary distraction.

[proud2BlibKansan]

39. At Camp Casey at Easter,

we were asked to turn off our cell phones by more than one speaker. No one objected - that I am aware of.

[marions ghost]

57. right everything is an emergency these days ...

NO cell phones in classes. Leave them in lockers or otherwise out of sight. No exceptions. Bring out a cell phone in class = lose the privilege to bring it to school for the remainder of the semester, effective that same day (parental notification). Hard line reinforced by punishment. There is NO reason for a child to need a cell phone while in class.

[mondo joe]

70. No problem with a STRICT ban on use during school hours. But a ban on

even HAVING them is ridiculous.

[tammywammy]

37. When I was in high school

we weren't allowed to have cell phones or pagers of any kind at school. I did have a cell phone, but it stayed in my car. This was after the Columbine tragedy too.

Every teacher had a cell phone (that only worked on the school grounds), so if there was an emergency, such as Columbine, there was still the ability to call for help. If you needed to make a phone call during school hours, you could use the pay phones or a phone in the office (if you had a good reason).

Cell phone are a distraction. While in college, students would spend the lecture text messaging other, and you do hear the beeps each time. That's distracting.

High school students don't need access to a cell phone while in school. They should leave them at home or in their cars.

[Blue_Tires]

40. from what i've seen over the years,

more cheating goes on with the phones than any other problem...I guess the school just got tired of it

[mitchum]

41. Follow the money...

and you will find who is driving the fight for the "necessity" of cell phones in schools.

[proud2BlibKansan]

43. Huh?

What money?

[mitchum]

45. Cell phone providers are behind this "urgent need" for schoolchildren...

to have cell phones.
I watched the same thing happen here in Georgia a few years ago.

[mondo joe]

69. Yes, because we're too stupid to actually know if we want cell phones.

Sometimes I can't tell if it's DU or Free Republic posters that thinks we're more stupid.

[benEzra]

44. The problem with a blanket ban...

is that if you absolutely ban possession during school, then you do not allow parents to give their children the option of having a phone AFTER school. Depending on your situation, that may or may not be a big deal, but I think parents should have a choice.

My wife has said that when our children are of age, she would like to get them those cell phones that can only call or receive calls from approved numbers, and make sure they have them at all times. And that if a school said no phones, she'd have the kids conceal it but carry it anyway. IMHO that is any parent's prerogative, and if the school wants to completely ban cell phone USE during school hours, that's OK, but banning possession goes WAY past their legitimate authority.

[Mythsaje]

51. Good arguments...

I heartily concur with this thinking.

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

46. Good, I Always Thought The Ban Was Rather Stupid.

There do need to be enforced guidelines, of course, but an outright ban I've always considered to be ridiculous and old fashioned. Technology advances, and they need to adapt to those changes. They should be able to figure out how to educate our children effectively in these new modern times of kids having cell phones.

[Horse with no Name]

47. They should be allowed to take their cell phones to class

Provided they are turned off.
A classroom isn't the place for this type of distraction.

[latebloomer]

49. I totally sympathize with the parents

There was an article in the New York Times about this recently, and they interviewed parents of 11-year-olds who took public transportation back and forth to school in Manhattan. Parents had routines set up where the kids checked in with the parents at various points along the way.

As the mother of suburban middle-school kids who I insist carry cell phones so that I'm aware of their locations, I understand why this is important to parents. It's a crazy world and you want to try to keep track of your kids. In my kids' school, they are required to turn off the phones all day and it works just fine.

[Mythsaje]

52. Yep...

Makes a lot of sense.

[robbedvoter]

55. We have a "Decider" as mayor - because people didn't bother to vote!

I personally loathe cell phones and my kid doesn't carry one - but this seems excesive. Requirement to turn them off in class would suffice. But our GOP mayor who got elected BY DEFAULT is an authoritarian idiot.
Next time, the million which shows up to protest the war may also show up to vote - we won't have W look alike order our kids around.

[MelliMel]

56. I don't have a problem with the cell phone ban.

Then again, my kids don't have cell phones. Why is that kids suddenly cannot deal with having to wait to get home to make a call?

[mondo joe]

71. For the same reasons adults can't. My kids don't have cells, but they

probably will in a few years with my blessing.

There have been times when it would have been very helpful for them to have a cell. In addition, we live in an earthquake area, and it would be a good bit of insurance for our family.

[mondo joe]

58. The phones should be allowed, but should have to be turned off during

school hours.

I have no objection to ban of cell USE in the school. But kids do have lives outside of school, and it is unduly burdensome to not let them have their phones with them.

[kath]

61. Fear, fear, fear, terra, terra, terra.

Wow - quite a few people on this thread (and many parents in general, it seems) have let their paranoia overrule any common sense...

Somehow, human beings survived for thousands of years without cell phones.

And there aren't kidnappers, child molesters and terrorists lurking behind every rock...

[latebloomer]

62. Do you have preteens?

And do you live in a large city?

Call me crazy, but way too many bad things DO happen on a daily basis.

No, we didn't have cell phones when i was growing up, but, as a mother, I'm mighty glad we do now.

[Darth_Kitten]

66. I've overheard too many of these parent/child exchanges...

talking about the most mundane of things.
You are right, nothing about kidnappers, child molesters and terrorists. :)

[mondo joe]

68. We survived without antibiotics, eyeglasses and free speech too.

Fallacious reasoning on your part.

There is no legitimate reason to deny parents and their children the option of having cell phones. They can easily be forbidden to use during school hours.