APS Current cell phones reality

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:People need to read the APS PIP and stop hyperventilating.

It allows for phones to be used for classwork.

MS is away for the day. Wearable devices allowed if smart features are turned off.

HS is away for instructional periods. Wearables allowed if smart features are turned off.

Accommodations and medical need addressed. Devices can be used in an emergency.

Right but that's just the rule for now. It's not the permanent rule and you have APE lobbying for an extreme ban where even HS kids would need to have all devices locked up for the whole day and they could never be used for classwork or in an emergency. Or did you not know this???

What is wrong with having phones away all day in school for a high schooler?

There will be plenty of phones for an emergency, between hardline and teachers and staff.

For class, won’t they have school laptops, calculators, and textbooks?

Textbooks? lol.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:People need to read the APS PIP and stop hyperventilating.

It allows for phones to be used for classwork.

MS is away for the day. Wearable devices allowed if smart features are turned off.

HS is away for instructional periods. Wearables allowed if smart features are turned off.

Accommodations and medical need addressed. Devices can be used in an emergency.

Right but that's just the rule for now. It's not the permanent rule and you have APE lobbying for an extreme ban where even HS kids would need to have all devices locked up for the whole day and they could never be used for classwork or in an emergency. Or did you not know this???

No. People are acting right now as if there is an extreme ban. The PIP is reasonable and overdue. Teachers need a something to point to for enforcement. Parents need to point to something to for flexibility. Students need to understand what’s acceptable use and what’s not. The PIP sets expectations for everyone.

I do not care what APE is advocating for and since when did APS listen to them?

I'm ok'ish with what's in place now but not at all ok with a total ban. Yes, we should be worried about that!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:People need to read the APS PIP and stop hyperventilating.

It allows for phones to be used for classwork.

MS is away for the day. Wearable devices allowed if smart features are turned off.

HS is away for instructional periods. Wearables allowed if smart features are turned off.

Accommodations and medical need addressed. Devices can be used in an emergency.

Right but that's just the rule for now. It's not the permanent rule and you have APE lobbying for an extreme ban where even HS kids would need to have all devices locked up for the whole day and they could never be used for classwork or in an emergency. Or did you not know this???

No. People are acting right now as if there is an extreme ban. The PIP is reasonable and overdue. Teachers need a something to point to for enforcement. Parents need to point to something to for flexibility. Students need to understand what’s acceptable use and what’s not. The PIP sets expectations for everyone.

I do not care what APE is advocating for and since when did APS listen to them?

Not that poster, but to clarify, that won’t be the rules for students at Wakefield in a couple of weeks when their phones are locked in pouches all day (meanwhile, the other HS kids could use phones at lunch, etc). I agree that phones are a huge distraction, but I think there are better (& cheaper) ways to address this than magnetic pouches.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:People need to read the APS PIP and stop hyperventilating.

It allows for phones to be used for classwork.

MS is away for the day. Wearable devices allowed if smart features are turned off.

HS is away for instructional periods. Wearables allowed if smart features are turned off.

Accommodations and medical need addressed. Devices can be used in an emergency.

Right but that's just the rule for now. It's not the permanent rule and you have APE lobbying for an extreme ban where even HS kids would need to have all devices locked up for the whole day and they could never be used for classwork or in an emergency. Or did you not know this???

What is wrong with having phones away all day in school for a high schooler?

There will be plenty of phones for an emergency, between hardline and teachers and staff.

For class, won’t they have school laptops, calculators, and textbooks?

Textbooks? lol.

My students had electronic textbooks in several of their classes. Why is that funny?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:People need to read the APS PIP and stop hyperventilating.

It allows for phones to be used for classwork.

MS is away for the day. Wearable devices allowed if smart features are turned off.

HS is away for instructional periods. Wearables allowed if smart features are turned off.

Accommodations and medical need addressed. Devices can be used in an emergency.

Right but that's just the rule for now. It's not the permanent rule and you have APE lobbying for an extreme ban where even HS kids would need to have all devices locked up for the whole day and they could never be used for classwork or in an emergency. Or did you not know this???

No. People are acting right now as if there is an extreme ban. The PIP is reasonable and overdue. Teachers need a something to point to for enforcement. Parents need to point to something to for flexibility. Students need to understand what’s acceptable use and what’s not. The PIP sets expectations for everyone.

I do not care what APE is advocating for and since when did APS listen to them?

I'm ok'ish with what's in place now but not at all ok with a total ban. Yes, we should be worried about that!

What is wrong with a total ban? My DS private has a total ban and it’s part of why DD will likely go private in 6th.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:People need to read the APS PIP and stop hyperventilating.

It allows for phones to be used for classwork.

MS is away for the day. Wearable devices allowed if smart features are turned off.

HS is away for instructional periods. Wearables allowed if smart features are turned off.

Accommodations and medical need addressed. Devices can be used in an emergency.

Right but that's just the rule for now. It's not the permanent rule and you have APE lobbying for an extreme ban where even HS kids would need to have all devices locked up for the whole day and they could never be used for classwork or in an emergency. Or did you not know this???

No. People are acting right now as if there is an extreme ban. The PIP is reasonable and overdue. Teachers need a something to point to for enforcement. Parents need to point to something to for flexibility. Students need to understand what’s acceptable use and what’s not. The PIP sets expectations for everyone.

I do not care what APE is advocating for and since when did APS listen to them?

Not that poster, but to clarify, that won’t be the rules for students at Wakefield in a couple of weeks when their phones are locked in pouches all day (meanwhile, the other HS kids could use phones at lunch, etc). I agree that phones are a huge distraction, but I think there are better (& cheaper) ways to address this than magnetic pouches.

What alternatives do you suggest?

[Anonymous]

I don’t understand why some of you think a cell phone ban is a bad thing. Seems like your anxiety talking.

Also, this is a national movement so it’s hilarious to give the credit to a rinky dink parents organization in Arlington.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So we are middle schoolers but what happens in high school? Do teachers take phones from someone watching a video with airbuds or quietly texting? Obviously loud disruptions would be handled but what happens for more subtle “note passing” style of phone use?

We are in LCPS but it currently depends on both the teacher and also the student. A good student with A’s and completed work watching Netflix with airbuds at the end of class is going to be ignored by most teachers.

Disagree. We are ALL in as a staff now that we finally have a policy that supports this. Before we couldn’t enforce and had no county policy to to reference for doing so- now we do. We’ve been waiting years for this. I had every single kid in every class today put theirs in a numbered pouch that matched the number on their desk so I know exactly who didn’t put their phone up if someone tries to claim they didn’t didn’t. Every kid did. The pouch is in a place up by me that they can’t go by or access when they’re walking out to leave for the bathroom. I will give ZERO leeway on this even though I know in week 2-3 the pushback will start and we will have to reset the expectation after breaks.

Everyone is in on this, we had a 90 minute staff meeting about it and how to enforce it consistently. The only teachers who won’t are the dodos with no classroom management who will let a kid say “I don’t have a phone” and get away with it (which one tried today and I said “yes you do now get it up there” and he caved). They will continue fighting the unwinnable phone battle but the ones who are consistent and hold the line will finally have a policy to enforce it and consequence if not. MOST of us are not going to just “let Netflix slide” and then give every other kid an open pass to also flout the rule and have their phone.

clearly you are not in APS, which is what OP asked about

Do you expect different attitude from APS teachers?

I have no idea, I assume that's why the question was asked SPECIFIC to APS.

Some of the APS parents are insisting their kids have their cell phones. Apparently, their kids will fall apart without them.

Well some kids actually will, but it's clear you don't care.

I care about the state of America’s youth. Take the phone away now or you’ll be paying the bill forever.

+1 the kids who are overwhelmed with anxiety at not having their phone accessible every minute are the kids who most need school to be phone-free. Obviously they need support to get through the transition and should be getting mental health care but letting anxiety rule by finding work arounds so some kids can have phones is not a long term solution for improving mental health.

And no kid needs to be watching Netflix at school when they finish work. If there's down time they can read, just like we did before smart phones.

+2
And most likely, their parents need some therapy for anxiety as well. I don't want their kid's phone to bring attention to my kid's classroom during a mass shooter event, or a bunch of phones tying up communication lines like 9/11. But mostly, I want kids to learn how to go through a school day/work day without checking their phone every 5 minutes and learning to have dinner out with friends or family without answering texts and phone calls from others, and I want them to LEARN period - that's why they're in school in the first place.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:People need to read the APS PIP and stop hyperventilating.

It allows for phones to be used for classwork.

MS is away for the day. Wearable devices allowed if smart features are turned off.

HS is away for instructional periods. Wearables allowed if smart features are turned off.

Accommodations and medical need addressed. Devices can be used in an emergency.

Right but that's just the rule for now. It's not the permanent rule and you have APE lobbying for an extreme ban where even HS kids would need to have all devices locked up for the whole day and they could never be used for classwork or in an emergency. Or did you not know this???

What is wrong with having phones away all day in school for a high schooler?

There will be plenty of phones for an emergency, between hardline and teachers and staff.

For class, won’t they have school laptops, calculators, and textbooks?

Textbooks? lol.

My students had electronic textbooks in several of their classes. Why is that funny?

I think the PP was referring to hard paper physical textbooks which seem to be non-existent or not used anymore.
Still, textbooks and phones are two different matters. Textbooks can be accessed on the school laptops - students shouldn't need to provide their own smart phone in order to access the school's curriculum. If teachers want to use apps as part of their curriculum, it should be accesses via the school-issued laptop. Believe it or not, there are actually some students who don't have a smart phone. It's not like having to buy your own notebooks and calculator - those don't incur an ongoing monthly contract/expense for a family and aren't available through back to school supply donation programs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There is clearly a market for school allowed “pager phones” that can send quick messages and make phone calls. That would allay a lot of the concerns of the apron string parents, and reduce the distraction in the classroom since these would be boring bricks.

Apple Watch is almost that, but too expensive and too many features.

Apple used to be big on education; making a classroom compliant family communicator (so it could be blue message bubbles) would be a compromise.

This is just crazy. What on earth does a parent need to tell their child during the school day? Anything important can be routed through the office. Anything unimportant can sit in text messages until school is over. Anxiety meds sound like a better solution than pager phones.

(Any kid with a medical need will get an exemption and carry their phone, no this doesn't apply to legit needs.)

+1 does everyone forget that we somehow managed to make it through the school day without phones?

I just finished reading The Anxious Generation and it's really an eye-opener about how the phone-based childhood/adolescence is having tremendously negative impacts on mental health and early adolescents are particularly vulnerable.

I’m 100% for bell to bell bans, they don’t belong in school at all.

I’m not even sure of the “medically necessary” need for a phone, can someone explain how that works? Are they using the phone as a glucose monitor or something?

But assuming we won’t win and get an actual ban, dumbing down allowed phones would help a lot.

Yes, some phones control insulin pumps. Some kids are highly allergic or asthmatic and may need a phone in case they have to use an EpiPen or rescue inhaler. I think there are also phone apps for issues like epilepsy or to change the mode for hearing aids.

I totally get the need for a phone if you have diabetes or a hearing aid etc, but why do kids need a phone if they need at EpiPen or a rescue inhaler?

Time can be pretty critical for a severe reaction or attack. People do die from both allergic reactions and asthma. If severe, I could see allowing a kid to carry a phone with their EpiPen or inhaler (e.g., while outside at gym class) to make sure they have access to rapid emergency services.

Wouldn't the teacher have that access? Like they always have - whether it was yelling for help, using the classroom landline phone, using the intercom, whatever.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I actually don't mind phones in the classroom as long as kids aren't goofing off on them. Taking pictures of slides is a lot easier on a phone than an iPad or computer. And I don't want my kids to be Luddites when they grow up. Like it or not, computers and devices are our future and we should all learn how to use these tools responsibly.

This whole thread consists of people on their devices too, so there's that.

Just because taking pictures of slides is possible doesn't mean it has to be done. It's actually better for their learning to take actual handwritten notes. And they really shouldn't need to take pictures of slides, since teachers could make them available on Canvas/google/email/etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There is clearly a market for school allowed “pager phones” that can send quick messages and make phone calls. That would allay a lot of the concerns of the apron string parents, and reduce the distraction in the classroom since these would be boring bricks.

Apple Watch is almost that, but too expensive and too many features.

Apple used to be big on education; making a classroom compliant family communicator (so it could be blue message bubbles) would be a compromise.

This is just crazy. What on earth does a parent need to tell their child during the school day? Anything important can be routed through the office. Anything unimportant can sit in text messages until school is over. Anxiety meds sound like a better solution than pager phones.

(Any kid with a medical need will get an exemption and carry their phone, no this doesn't apply to legit needs.)

+1000

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Must everything on this forum involve APE?? Some of you are obsessed. Go back to your echo chamber.

Can APE disappear then? I’m tired of them sucking up all of the air and inserting themselves into every conversation regarding APS.

They seem to only be sucking up your air.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m an APS HS teacher - not at Wakefield with the pilot program - and I don’t see how this new policy changed things at all. We’ve always said phones should be away for the day. We’ve never been able to back that with consequences. Admin has told me I’m not allowed to take phones. In my class, I will continue to ignore most phone use until I can have admin back me on stricter rules.

So glad my kid is at Wakefield.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So we are middle schoolers but what happens in high school? Do teachers take phones from someone watching a video with airbuds or quietly texting? Obviously loud disruptions would be handled but what happens for more subtle “note passing” style of phone use?

We are in LCPS but it currently depends on both the teacher and also the student. A good student with A’s and completed work watching Netflix with airbuds at the end of class is going to be ignored by most teachers.

Disagree. We are ALL in as a staff now that we finally have a policy that supports this. Before we couldn’t enforce and had no county policy to to reference for doing so- now we do. We’ve been waiting years for this. I had every single kid in every class today put theirs in a numbered pouch that matched the number on their desk so I know exactly who didn’t put their phone up if someone tries to claim they didn’t didn’t. Every kid did. The pouch is in a place up by me that they can’t go by or access when they’re walking out to leave for the bathroom. I will give ZERO leeway on this even though I know in week 2-3 the pushback will start and we will have to reset the expectation after breaks.

Everyone is in on this, we had a 90 minute staff meeting about it and how to enforce it consistently. The only teachers who won’t are the dodos with no classroom management who will let a kid say “I don’t have a phone” and get away with it (which one tried today and I said “yes you do now get it up there” and he caved). They will continue fighting the unwinnable phone battle but the ones who are consistent and hold the line will finally have a policy to enforce it and consequence if not. MOST of us are not going to just “let Netflix slide” and then give every other kid an open pass to also flout the rule and have their phone.

clearly you are not in APS, which is what OP asked about

Do you expect different attitude from APS teachers?

I have no idea, I assume that's why the question was asked SPECIFIC to APS.

Some of the APS parents are insisting their kids have their cell phones. Apparently, their kids will fall apart without them.

Well some kids actually will, but it's clear you don't care.

I care about the state of America’s youth. Take the phone away now or you’ll be paying the bill forever.

+1 the kids who are overwhelmed with anxiety at not having their phone accessible every minute are the kids who most need school to be phone-free. Obviously they need support to get through the transition and should be getting mental health care but letting anxiety rule by finding work arounds so some kids can have phones is not a long term solution for improving mental health.

And no kid needs to be watching Netflix at school when they finish work. If there's down time they can read, just like we did before smart phones.

+2
And most likely, their parents need some therapy for anxiety as well. I don't want their kid's phone to bring attention to my kid's classroom during a mass shooter event, or a bunch of phones tying up communication lines like 9/11. But mostly, I want kids to learn how to go through a school day/work day without checking their phone every 5 minutes and learning to have dinner out with friends or family without answering texts and phone calls from others, and I want them to LEARN period - that's why they're in school in the first place.

+3
The parent who posted on AEM re: their child having an emergency meeting with their therapist because they were so worried about the possibility of not having access to their phone in an emergency. Ugh. Meeting with the therapist is the right place for that child to work that out--and I don't mean that in an anxiety or mental health bashing way.

Americans are obsessed with the idea that we can create or manufacture safety. My personal opinion is that we've ended up this way because we enjoy relative safety in the U.S. aside from our gun issues, which is a whole other debate and rabbit hole. But it has lead to a generation of Americans who panic and cannot handle any situation that causes them discomfort. I felt the same way during COVID--people couldn't control the virus or the way that their neighbor/city/county/state/country responded to it and freaked out--on both ends of the spectrums. We've lost the ability to tolerate risk and discomfort.

If there is an active shooter situation at my child's school of course I would want to be in touch with them, but, would being in touch with them change the outcome of the active shooter situation? No. Of course not. Communicating with your child by phone will not save their life--back to the gun debate....

Kids and parents can save any necessary messaging for outside of school hours. If a child needs an accommodation, fine, but, otherwise, phones should be away. There is no need.