Are cellphones educational tools, or a scourge on learning?

There’s always been a division on

whether or not cellphones should be allowed in classrooms. Personally speaking, I would say no.
Cellphones should not be allowed inside the classroom, for the specific reason that, cellphones can
cause: distraction, may promote cheating and cyberbullying on students.

There’s no doubt that cellphones have remarkable assets that can be used for learning. But in
truth students- regardless of teachers and parent’s guidance- use their phones for digital amusements.
Phones can be the element of distraction in class and that would damage the learning process of
students, which will later result to low test scores and therefore producing low-achieving students.
Some examples of distractions generated by cellphones are: video games, social media notifications and
even a simple text from friends. These can disrupt class discussions and activities. There’s also a
concerning body of evidence that cheating is prominent amongst high school students. According to a
recent study conducted by Pew Research Center, over 65 percent of teens admit that they’re using
cellphones to cheat on homework and class activities. Even in my school, I can see that is happening. By
simply looking for answers using Google during class, is a clear evidence of cheating. In all honesty,
cheating comes in all shapes and forms and students will always have a new strategy for cheating but by
the power of technology, cheating is made easy. It doesn’t only increase the temptation to cheat but it
also decreases good quality education. You affect yourself greatly by resorting to cheating in class. It
messes your capacity to think fundamentally and resolve issues. There’s no education if we practice
deception. Finally, cellphones advocate cyber bullying especially in teens. Nowadays, bullying doesn’t
have to occur face-to-face. Technology can also be a tunnel by which you can bully someone through
the internet. Cellphones create different kinds of cyber bullying such as: hateful comments or
harassments posted on social media, MMS scandals, denigration and cyber stalking. Posting hateful
comments on social media is the usual occurrence nowadays. You can see teenagers post offensive
statements about someone. Virtual harassment may cause the victim to be at risk. This may lead to
certain mental problems such as depression. At present, teenagers are even caught up to certain
scandals like violent clips and rape clips. Some are even fake ones that stir up enough agitation to create
a ruckus and cyber bullying. Just imagine being stalked by someone online. Some millennials may think
that they are being stalked because of popularity but what about others who repeatedly gets frightening
notifications from someone? Cyber-bullying may cause you to have low self-esteem, a sudden change in
personality and even isolation. You see, cellphones really are instruments of malevolence that
negatively impacts not only your standing in society but also your life in general.

We should all learn how to effectively manage our cellphones. Students should try to obstruct
habits by turning of their phones or putting it on airplane mode. Little by little they’ll be more in tune
with their cellphone addiction and eventually realize that it’s not the end of the world if you don’t use
your phone 24/7. If students continue to be unruly, maybe it’s time to confiscate their phones. Through
this process your mind will be open to the actual use of phones and even practice self-restraint. Start
being an example of how we can unplug ourselves from technology and plug into our physical life more
often.