Cell Phones in Education

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Comment by Ian Jones on April 11, 2012 at 11:02am

I have many students have have cellphones/smartphones...We do have a policy on them, but I am not one that has a problem with them being used. In fact, I have often asked my students grab their phones and find out some kind of fact.  We were doing a genetics assignment, creating a family tree, with the trait of 6 fingers on a hand.  The very last question I asked, is what is this called.  I told them to go home and find out for me and a few of them said, we already know, we looked it up on our Ipods.  I was floored by this, didn't really think much about it, but what a great thing for them to do. I often ask them to be resourceful and this is an excellent example of this :)  Everyone here, keep up the good work!

Comment by Kimberly Caise on March 20, 2012 at 2:03pm

Is anyone else having trouble using ChaCha or Google SMS for research purposes?

Comment by Willyn Webb on March 20, 2012 at 8:49am

Just a reminder that "Teaching Generation Text: Using Cell Phones to Enhance Learning" the book inspired by this group is now available.  We would love to speak to your school, train teachers, and get more people on board embracing the power of cell phones for learning!   Check out links to buying the book and the companion blog at our websitewww.teachinggenerationtext.com

Comment by Anna Mavroudi on March 16, 2012 at 12:14am

Dear colleagues, my name is Anna Mavroudi. I am a former educator, now doing research on mobile learning. I have decided to choose a methodology coming form learning sciences  (namely Design-Based Research-DBR) that really seeks the opinions of the practitioners in order to start designing. So, i would be grateful if you could answer this online questionnaire  http://www.surveygizmo.com/s3/857565/How-would-YOU-design-for-mobil...

  thank you very much, Anna

Comment by Laura LaFrenier on March 3, 2012 at 1:27pm

@Linnea, I feel your pain! It would definitely be difficult to go from an anti-cell phone culture to one that now asks students to use phones in the classroom. However, I can see the benefits. One of my hesitations is the potential for more distraction for my students if they have the ability to text and access the internet. Students use and view cell phones as social connectors. It would take some work to change their perspective to one of viewing them as an educational tool.

Comment by Lauren on February 29, 2012 at 5:59am

@Linnea I have a similar struggle. Cell phones are supposed to be kept in the office and are not encouraged in the classroom. However, our school is not against technology and I like @Jennifer's idea of doing a small project and presenting it to admin. The other issue is funding of course. The Verizon idea sounds great to have data processing, but texting would be very benefitial especially for immediate feedback from tools like Polls Everywhere. This would help the teachers quickly gauge students understanding. Having a seperate cell phone for class would integrate technology and provide engagement, but would seperate the social issues and associations they make with cell phones. Also, the more practical use of them will create an understanding of the phones in the classroom. Lastly, I like the iea of using Polls Everywhere for parents. You could put this on a classroom website to get feedback from parents.

Comment by Linnea Czerney on February 26, 2012 at 9:17pm

I am struggling because my superintendent is extreme pro - using cell phones in the classroom, but has not given any guidance as to how that should be done. As an elementary, we have spent years saying that their cell phones shouldn't be brought to school, but now we are asking them to use them for assignments? I love the potential that these bring, but until they are issued by the school, I'm not sure that it could be implemented in a good way to add to education. I recently read about given students cell phones to use as an initiative by Verizon, for internet, but it would be nice to still have the texting feature enabled. I teach in a school with a lot of poverty, where many students don't have cell phones. I love the possibilities, but think that it needs to be school wide and not on a class by class basis. How to you go from condemning cell phones to encouraging them in your classroom? 

Comment by Jennifer Bramble on February 25, 2012 at 3:07pm

@Catie Barber: The New Tech system of schools does allow cell phones in the classroom as part of their technology integrated PBL style. They teach trust, respect, and responsibility. That is great... when the kids buy in... We are in our second year as New Tech, so the kids are still not quite getting it! We will readdress the situation next year as more students buy in.

@Daniel Winther: I suggest you propose doing a small project in your room where the students use their cell phones. Then report the results to the admin. Maybe propose sending home some sort of permission slip or waiver first to allow the use of the phones for the project. I have noticed lately, that if the students have a specific task to do, they will do it and not stray. It is when they are finished that the trouble can start. With cell phones, you tell them to put them away when finished. Good Luck! (Check out www.newtechnetwork.org to see school that integrate them successfully)

Comment by Dilys Gibbs-Harrison on February 25, 2012 at 2:12pm

I teach at an alterntive school. Cell phone use is banned but it is extremely hard to enforce. I have asked students about incorporating their usage in the classroom lesson. They are against it, saying most kids would still be texting or on facebook. They will use them to look up something if I ask them too though.

Comment by Daniel Winther on February 25, 2012 at 2:07pm

My school also has a very strict policy when it comes to mobile devices. Our students have cell phones, MP3 players and eReaders of their own, which would be great to incorporate into the class. However, the schoolwide expectation is that these devices are NOT to be used by the students during the day. Anyone have any suggestions as to how to begin discussions on incorporating these devices safely and effectively?

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