Argument: Should students be allowed to use their smartphones during the school day?

Title: Cell phones in school-- yes?

Topic: Why cell phones should be allowed to be used during the school day at appropriate times.

General Purpose: persuade people to believe the benefits of having students use their own

technology devices in the classroom with stipulations.

Intro:

School systems face many challenges pertaining to regulating cell phones use by students in

school. There are definitely pros and cons to letting students use their devices during the school

day. The confiscations of cell phones, which has in the past always been the initial reaction when

a student has their phone out, has been very controversial. I am here to tell you why integrating

students' own personal technology devices into the classroom can be beneficial and why students

should be allowed to use their smartphones throughout the day with certain guidelines that need

to be followed.

Schools all over the United States face the decision of whether or not they will let the students in

their school carry their cellphones and use them in school. Then they deal with confiscated the

cellphones when they see them in school which is not only upsetting the students but the parents.

The parents today don’t want to see school administration taking these cell phones from their

child. Some parents want themselves to be in charge of disciplining and being in control of their

cell phone. Schools will be able to lessen these debates with the students and their parents by

rethinking what cell phones mights have. Cell phones should be allowed in the classroom
because it starts to teach responsibility, it opens up new ways of learning with technology, and

for the use of emergencies.

Paragraph 1:

Main Point 1: Cell phones should be allowed in the classroom because it teaches the students to

prioritize. What is more important my school work or my phone? Instead of the students

sneaking using their phone it allows them to have it but make their own decision. Whether a

student chooses to be on their phone at an inappropriate time shows whether they are responsible

enough to choose what is more important to them. Having their cell phones on them also helps

them prep for the real world as far as checking emails, using their device to look up the news.

Technology is being integrated more and more into the classroom so it’s important that they have

a quick easy access to the internet for learning purposes. Maybe if these kids are taught

responsibility using their cell phones they wouldn’t be glued on them 24/7 they would realize

they need to prioritize and learning the consequences of choosing their cell phone over what's

important.

“At Stanford University in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s, psychologist and professor Walter

Mischel conducted a series of delayed gratification tests, the ​Marshmallow test​. Researchers

have shown that the development of willpower is vital to becoming a socially well-adjusted adult

in areas such as ​popularity, good interpersonal relationships, task performance, and school and

work success​.”
https://www.teachingquality.org/content/blogs/robert-sterner/4-things-you%E2%80%99ll-miss-b

anning-cellphones-your-classroom

“By observing how students interact with their cellphones, I can see which students are more

mature and who can control their desires and not let those desires control them.”

“By observing how students interact with their cellphones, I can see which students are more

mature and who can control their desires and not let those desires control them.”

Main Point 2:

The world of technology has gone mobile. It is estimated that soon the penetration of mobile

technologies will reach and then surpass 100 percent. Mobile technologies are prevalent in our

schools; we see them every day. Many encourage the use of these technologies while equal

amounts are discouraging the use of these technologies.

The simulation was created for use with mobile technologies and when integrated into the

classroom demonstrated that the combination of constructivist learning theory and the integration

of mobile technologies resulted in:

● Students readily engaged with the simulation, and found it to be a rewarding and

stimulating experience.

● Students successfully collaborated to answer the relevant questions about the simulation.
 ● The technology facilitated, rather than hindered, normal interactions between the students

– the devices augmented rather than replaced normal channels of communication, and

hence provided unobtrusive technology support students were able to test out

experimental hypotheses within the simulation after observing specific behaviors.

https://sites.google.com/a/boisestate.edu/edtechtheories/craig_and_vanlom

Students learn from technology and there are so many apps and online resources that help them

do that. You give them a cell phone and they can work it with no problem, so why not let them

learn on something that they are going to be engaged and learn from. Of course a student will be

more engaged by learning on a smartphone with technology than a blank white piece of paper.

Kids today are tech savvy and that’s just the way it is. Might as well use it to our advantage.

Main Point 3:

If a student has an emergency or forgets their project that is due today they can contact their

parents quickly. This can be an advantage especially if something is due and they need it as soon

as possible. ​In the wake of school shootings over the past 13 years, school districts are beginning

to change their policies as a part of school emergency plans.

After the Chardon High School shooting earlier this year, administrators at the small-town school

in Ohio reported that students used their phones to call 911 to let their parents know they were

safe. The school is now considering an update to their plan called ALICE — which stands for

alert, lockdown, inform, counter, evacuate — in which cellphones play an important role.
http://mashable.com/2012/12/15/cellphones-school-emergency/#SxWeXM2sugq3

Teachers could text students in a crisis and tell them what areas of the school are safe or what

they should do next.

Conclusion: In conclusion the world is depending more and more on mobile handheld devices.

Therefore, schools need to integrate more smartphones into the classroom to help in teaching

students responsibility, to integrate more use of technology in the classroom, and to assit with

emergencies at school. I hope you to can see what advantages cell phones bring into the

classroom and why schools should stop banning these hand held devices.

Video: ​https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhF5ShRsz0Y