What are the advantages of cellphone at school?

We're curious whether our guest blogger today is convincing you. We also wonder what teachers think.

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Smartphone ownership
App availability
Why smartphones should be allowed in school
How to, not if to, use smartphones
Further your knowledge about the digital classroom
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Besides the obvious safety reason there can be a wide variety of reasons to allowing kids to have a cell phone in school. Below you will find a list as to why it may be beneficial to allow kids to have a cell phone in school.

Parental contact. The amount of time it takes to reach a parent during an emergency can be significantly reduced if the child has a cell phone. Finding “Mom” or “Dad” listed on their contact list and making the call from the site of the emergency would be much quicker than having to notify the teacher or office and having them look the information up in their system.
School closures. If there is a weather related emergency, and the school needs to close ,it would be a lot less hassle for the school, if the students could contact their parents themselves. It would be much faster than standing in line at a school phone or the secretary having to make calls or activate a calling tree.
Scheduling. Most phones now have calendar options on them. This is an easy way for students to keep track of their assignments and upcoming tests. Since teenagers are never very far from their phones it would be easier for them to manage their work electronically, than trying to keep track on a piece of paper that could get lost or damaged.
Research. Keeping students from surfing the web during class time could easily be managed by having a policy that they are turned off. This being said the internet on cell phones can be a useful tool for research on different projects.
Reduced workload for secretarial staff. Parents can send messages in regards to being late or reminder for appointments via text message or voicemail to their children and thus eliminate or reduce the amount of messages being passed to students by the office.
Emergencies. If there is an emergency at school that would require calling the police, fire or ambulance services the response time is much shorter for an observing student to use their cell phone rather than finding one at the school.
Note taking. If a student is slow in taking notes from the board or projector they can use their in camera phone feature to take a picture of the notes, they didn’t catch, so as not to miss anything.
Keeping tabs. Every parent’s worst nightmare is not knowing where your child is. Many cell phone providers now offer a tracking option that will allow you to locate where your child is (or the nearest cell phone tower). This way if the school calls and says your child is absent, and you cannot reach them, you are able to track them down to make sure they are safe.
Forget something? Whether it is their lunch, soccer gear or homework assignment, we all know that kids will be kids and that forgetfulness is a part of human nature. Allowing kids to have a cell phone at school will make contacting parents much easier with a quick call or text during a break rather than having to get permission to go to the office to make a call that could take much longer if there is already a line waiting.
Peace of mind. Knowing that you are able to reach your child at a moment’s notice will give any parent the peace of mind they need in order to send them out of the nest. After 9/11 we all tend to be more cautious and protective with our families and this is just another way to have that reassurance.

For those of us beyond age 30, we all remember life without a cell phone. Long lines at a pay phone, stress during emergencies on whether you can get to a phone in time and the pads of sticky notes getting lost where we wrote down our, much needed, information. Cell phones can be a distraction if left on during class but after reading the information listed above I hope to give you some insight into why a cell phone in school is not such a bad idea after all.

This article was written by the admin at Wireless of Internet Reviews.

What do you think? Feel free to agree or disagree or tell us the disadvantages for allowing kids to have cell phones in schools. If you're a teacher, what is your opinion?

Today’s students are digital natives. Nearly three out of four teenagers have access to a smart phone, and so many students take them to school every day. For some teachers, it’s probably more uncommon to see a student without one than with one.

But are cellphones in the classroom a good idea? Do they serve as a valid learning tool or, or are they just another distraction contributing to the social disengagement of children?

We took a look at the arguments for using cellphones in class, along with the number of students with phones and the number of apps available to them.

Smartphone ownership

Cellphones have obviously come a long way since the two-pound, $3,995 Motorola DynaTAC 8000X was first introduced in 1984. Subsequent generations of mobile phones continued to evolve and became more affordable and portable, and now offer so much more value beyond a means to call others.

In the ongoing discussion surrounding the efficacy of digital devices in the classroom, schools must face the fact that smartphones are already being utilized by students of all ages. According to an eMarketer article referencing a February 2016 survey by Flagship Research, “Among the 14- to 18-year-olds polled, 87% said they ‘own and use’ a smartphone—i.e., penetration about a dozen percentage points higher than eMarketer’s figure for 12- to 17-year-olds.”

Clearly, young people are acquiring smartphones at a staggering rate.

App availability

Get this: The Apple Store had 800 apps the month of its launch in July 2008. As of January 2017, it had 2.2 million. How many educational apps are there? According to New America, as of June 2015, there were over 80,000 educational apps available in the app store.

From colors to ABCs to “The Little Engine That Could,” what used to be taught through books can now be learned through apps—and that’s just for younger generations. The applications for using smartphones from preschool through college are in place and growing.

Why smartphones should be allowed in school

With the widespread use of smartphones by younger and younger students, what are the practical reasons for allowing smartphones as a learning tool in the classroom? Consider these points:

Students learn in a way they are comfortable. Smartphones are young-person intuitive. More and more students know how to use them, and they are becoming the most used “tool” by teens.
Students can get answers quickly. Smartphones provide the ability to get answers really fast. In some situations, a student may not ask for clarification to a question he or she has in an open classroom—because they can use their smartphone to get the answer they’re looking for.
Audio and video can bring learning to life. Audio and video capabilities of smartphones can put a voice to John F. Kennedy, a dramatic video image to the Hindenburg disaster, and allow students to hear the music of Chopin or Al Jolson. They can even connect students with other students from around the globe and expand their learning world.
Access to educational apps. Equipping your classroom with handy learning apps takes learning up a notch. There are many educational apps available in a wide range of subjects for all kinds of learners. These game-like exercises encourage playful competition among your students, while enhancing the way they learn new ideas. Plus, students (and you, the teacher) will love the change from regular lecture instruction.
Smartphones allow for social learning. Smartphones can allow students to work in groups on projects, sharing information and discoveries. They can move toward a common goal, again, in a format they are comfortable using.

How to, not if to, use smartphones

Challenges of leveling the playing field, maintaining proper use and control, and preventing abuse with smartphones are similar to problems faced by teachers in the past. Back then, it was passing a note; today it is texting. Both are fairly avoidable, but it doesn’t mean phones should be banned (paper wasn’t!).

We believe the focus of smartphone use in the classroom should shift from not if they should be used, but how to best use them. While critics will cite the opportunity for cheating, unauthorized socializing, and social isolation issues involved, the fact is students are using smartphones every day, and they are using them to learn. Teachers can be a positive force in helping students use them properly in the classroom.

Our advice: set ground rules for smartphones in your classroom, along with clear expectations of what happens if they’re used inappropriately. Just like with anything else, too much of something can be a bad thing—but just enough, can be perfect for learning in new ways.