Comments on: Full of Sound & Fury

By: NO CELL PHONES! | Sustainably Digital

NO CELL PHONES! | Sustainably Digital — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 17:47:09 +0000

[...] Full of Sound & Fury by Damian Bariexca [...]

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By: dmcordell

dmcordell — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 03:17:54 +0000

I’m ready when you are, kiddo. Shake ‘em and re-make’em that’s us.

By: Damian

Damian — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 02:37:11 +0000

Sounds like @jeff, @whsbotany, and @kate are all testing the waters to various degrees, as am I. Knowing the climate of my school, I am confident that if a senior administrator walked into my classroom and saw 22 kids, mobiles in hand, but all working on a project, the absolute worst that would happen would be some slight bemusement on his/her part (kinda like @kate's school, it sounds). I don't think anyone's arguing for mob(ile) rule, whsbotany (except maybe some of the kids?), but you're right about having to find some area of compromise. @ben, do you see that happening at your school anytime soon? @jeff, I get the same reaction when I have my kids text responses to polls at PollEverywhere.com, and there's a part of me that feels like I'm engaging in a little gimmickry. Then I realize how into it they get, and in my experience that engagement tends to carry over into the non-phone-related areas of the lesson; sounds like it's been yours, too. @jose, I teach in a high school, but I'm curious as to your thoughts - when you say 'banned', do you mean as in "not allowed in the school" or "keep them off and away during class"? Again, I'd never argue with the latter statement (unless there was a specific purpose for their use), but I'm curious as to how a school would enforce the former. @diane, we're meant to open our own online consulting business when you retire and I graduate, and believe you me when I say there will be nary a model volcano or screen wipe in sight.

By: diane

diane — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 18:22:39 +0000

We are cutting edge when it comes to cut & paste state brochures, derivative science projects (can you say “model volcano”?) and PP with special effects.

Welcome to my world.

By: Jeff Wasserman

Jeff Wasserman — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 17:32:28 +0000

Earlier in the year, I had my students with web-access cell plans pull out their phones in class and look stuff up for me, since our classroom computer was completely fugazi’d. At first, they couldn’t believe what I was asking them to do, but then they got into it. There was a race to see who could find out about what first, and a lot of crowding around, and it was cool.

Then I noticed the classroom rules sheet that the teacher I share the room with had put up, and realized that if my kids were in his class, they’d each’ve just lost 10 points off their final grades.

By: whsbotany

whsbotany — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 14:59:08 +0000

I come from a “ban it, damn it” school which is in the throws of experiment with allowing students to use cells/iPods, etc as well as finish their coffees – I truly believe the MaryLou’s down the street would go bankrupt if the kids stopped getting coffee – prior to morning meeting. Has it been a panacea? No. Has it led to far fewer meaningly confrontations in the mornings? Absolutely.

I really think that these technologies do have a place in school. There are students for whom having music or the ability to access lectures via podcasts is a huge huge help. However, we do need to find a happy medium policy-wise. Confiscating the equipment isn’t the answer, esp in our district where if it gets lost in our possession, we have to replace it. Letting the kids have free reign isn’t either. The question is how do we find the “sweet spot”?

By: Ben Wildeboer

Ben Wildeboer — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 13:34:10 +0000

Great post. I’ve struggled with some similar policies at my school (students here are allowed to use mp3 players and phones in the hallways & at lunch- but are banned from classrooms). If I find myself in a similar situation, I’ll think back to your email, and hopefully do something similar. Thanks for representing the tech-inclusion side so well!

@diane: Wha? No email accounts? What 21st century skills do they support? I don’t remember ignorance being on the list…

By: jose

jose — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 02:40:15 +0000

Actually, I’m for banning cells in the classroom, unless you’re teaching high school. For middle schoolers, they need to be set free from the technology for a bit. It’s actually like unplugging from the Matrix for them. While I agree that the technologies mentioned are useful (I got Lifehacker RSSed), I still see the benefits of having the cell phones cleared off their minds if not simply for the very necessary skill of learning how to focus, something middle schoolers have a hard time doing. I respect your e-mail, though. Must be nice being a voice of clarity.

By: Kate Olson

Kate Olson — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 01:45:55 +0000

Thanks for writing this, I was waiting all afternoon Joking aside, I admire you for your restraint and professionalism in your reply. As you tweeted, it was a teachable moment and you took that opportunity – I hope something positive comes out of it, but you did what you could while staying on high ground…….email exchanges can be ugly and adults are just as bad or worse than kids. On the technology front, cell phones are banned in my school, but I’m fairly certain that if I approached my principal about using them for a specific class activity it would be approved. I did just that with mp3 players last week – students have to keep them in pockets on the way to class and the way back (can be confiscated in the hall by any teacher who sees one) but they are allowed to use them in my class for help concentrating during keyboarding practice.
Thanks again for taking the time to post this.

By: Damian

Damian — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 01:43:14 +0000

“Our kids aren’t allowed email accounts or laptops either. Yet our BOE ‘endorses’ 21st century learning.”

Boggles the mind, that. Boggles the mind.