A recent piece in TechWorldNews, “Think Before You Ban,” discussed the current kibosh on cell phone use in New York public schools. While cell phones (and Akon ringtones) certainly have the potential to cause disruption in the class, the question is whether an all-out ban is the answer.
Let’s look at it this way: If a band records three bad songs on an album of 10, do you delete it from your iTunes? Most would agree that it takes a lot more than a few missteps to cause him or her to banish a group’s entire catalogue. (It takes an appearance on “Rock of Love.”) To curb speeding, we don’t get rid of cars, we set speed limits and hire highway patrol officers. Similarly, the disposing of cell phones in school is a blanket approach and probably not the best way to go. In the same way that phones allow us to chat with our grandmother in Kansas while we’re sailing in the Mediterranean, they can also allow classrooms to participate with the rest of the world.
Essentially, whether or not we like it, the world is wired. It’s connected and it begs a voice, a face and an idea on the other end. There will always be the kid who forgets to put his phone on silent or would rather play Tetris than take notes, but these are simply brushstrokes on a canvas, not the entire painting. Children growing up today have the chance to learn more things, from more places and form intelligent, worldly opinions that they will take with them into adulthood. Where better to embrace the future than in schools? Instead of limiting cell phones, would it not be better to regulate and even adapt their use–and mobile technology in general–in and for school?
SingTel, a Singaporean carrier, recently announced that they are one of the companies supporting the local government’s “future schools” program. The goal is to help spearhead the use of technology in schools and set a new benchmark in experiential learning, as well as introduce ground-breaking methods for teaching and assessment. This program along with others such as North Carolina’s Mobile Education Pilot Project (in partnership with Qualcomm) will help define the next phase of education around the world. Cell phones could give kids the opportunity to communicate and collaborate with each other both in and out of school, allow them to access supplemental content, get live help from tutors, play educational games and see animated visuals. Smartphones especially could help close the digital divide and give kids hands-on learning with the technology that is shaping the future. If mobile improves the quality of education, then maybe teachers would no longer mind when students use text speak in their work. Just so long as they don’t phone it in.
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