Any parent will tell you that his worst nightmare is not knowing where his child is. A thousand gut wrenching scenarios run through his mind: Is my child ok? Has she been kidnapped? In an accident?
Urban Worries
It's much worse for a big city parent. The variables increase exponentially to the point where you become a nervous wreck. Subways, buses, the weather, purse snatching, hanging around the wrong friends - supply your own worries about your children. That's why cellphones are such a wonderful tool. They allow for instant communication with your child by voice or text message. Cell phones can turn an emergency into a relatively easily handled and controlled event. They can give instant peace of mind. Of course, I am assuming that your child is honest and is where he says he is when you call. Read All Work and No Play, a survey commissioned by the Wallace Foundation, for some sobering facts about cell phone use.
Why is a 1988 Ban on Cell Phones Suddenly Being Enforced?
Why, after eight years of not enforcing the cell phone ban in New York City public schools, is Mayor Michael Bloomberg cracking down on these ubiquitous electronic instruments? Parents are enraged. Several are suing. Even the teachers union, normally a bastion of conservatism, thinks Hizzoner has gone too far.
We all understand that cell phones can be used inappropriately. But doesn't it make more sense to teach young people how to use the technology rather than banning it outright? Frankly the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. Reassuring anxious parents who wish to keep in touch with their children outside of classes is a perfectly reasonable advantage. After all we adults are always juggling the use of cell phones while at work. So why can't children learn to do this as well? As a parent with four grown children living in places far distant from me, I am reassured to know that they can reach me in a nanosecond if they need me. I keep my cellphone on vibrate and screen unimportant calls which can wait until I have a break in my work. I frankly can't imagine life without a cell phone.
Cell Phones Are Allowed in Most Private Schools
In private schools the attitude is remarkably different and pragmatic. The prevailing view is that cell phones are here to stay and that they are an essential line of communication between frantically busy parents and their children. As a result, most private schools allow cell phones on their premises with the understanding that phones must be turned off during class and only used under certain conditions and in specified places.
Most schools have very specific guidelines written into their handbooks and acceptable use policy manuals. All students agree to abide by those rules both while on the school premises and also while under the school's jurisdiction when off campus.
Opposing Views
There is ample evidence of cell phones being a distraction in school. Small size and inaudible, high-pitched ring tones make cell phones easy to hide and use. It is a proven fact that adults over 30 cannot hear some of the high-pitched ring tones teens use deliberately for that reason. Cell phones can be used to cheat, to call the wrong people and to bully classmates. For these reasons many teachers and administrators want cellphones banned from school. The sensible approach is to create a set of rules and policies regarding cell phone use and enforce them.
Post 9/11 Stress
This makes great sense to me. After all 9/11 changed everything for most Americans. Shootings in schools and snipers who shoot just for the heck of it add to the overarching worry about terrorist attacks. Knowing that your child can call you and that you can call them is a small reassurance which all parents have the right to expect.
From the Media
School Cell Phone Ban Violates Rights of Parents, Lawsuit Says
Parents Sue to Overturn Ban on Cell Phones
Cell Phones: Nuisance or Necessity
Cell Phone Ban Angers Students
