Anonymous
Post 04/29/2022 20:25     Subject: possible cell phone policy change
Lots of parents at our SS are saying their kid needs one for anxiety or to take pics of assignments and they'll just get it in their "plan" to have them.

I try to be sensitive to kids with special needs, and I have a DD with anxiety. But she doesn't need to text me during a class, even if she wants to. She can do it on a break/passing time/lunch.

Our school board will fold to these parents.
Anonymous
Post 04/29/2022 18:04     Subject: possible cell phone policy change
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I am not arguing for use in class but I can at least see that a phone is also a calculator. That could be an appropriate tool. I do not envy teachers dealing with this though! I can limit my kids usage so they still have it to communicate with me as needed (e.g. transportation, activities).


We have class sets of calculators, phones are unnecessary in that regard.


And I'd rather buy my kid (and anyone elses') a $6 calculator from amazon than use it as an excuse for kids to be on their phones during class time.


New poster. In high school at least, some classes have the kids use phones for instructional quizzes and games. I've seen the quizzes and games and the content was useful as far as I could tell. I say that because people will come here to complain about how teachers shouldn't use phones in this way, but the reality is, some do. And kids share phones for these things if they don't have their own. I don't know if overall it's good or bad, but it is reality.
Anonymous
Post 04/29/2022 17:53     Subject: possible cell phone policy change
I'm surprised that andoid and iphones don't have a school mode that enables making calls only during certain hours as part of parental controls.
Anonymous
Post 04/29/2022 15:21     Subject: possible cell phone policy change
Anonymous wrote:I was in a 504 meeting for my HS daughter a few months ago and in the narratives every teacher commented about her being on her phone all the time in class. I was appalled and made it clear to her that I expect her phone to be put away in the classroom, and we have been enforcing that by monitoring her usage and, if we see she's on it when she's in class, shutting it down using our parental controls. But I was also shocked that it was happening at all, because I had been under the impression phones weren't allowed to be out in class. The counselor told me it's a rule with no teeth and that teachers don't want to waste time enforcing it because it just makes their lives harder.


It's unfortunate that most parents probably don't know their kids are doing this and assume it "the other kids" that do.
What do you use to "monitor usage and shut down with parental controls"? We are about to get our 12 year a phone and I'm starting to research these things.
Anonymous
Post 04/29/2022 14:31     Subject: possible cell phone policy change
I was in a 504 meeting for my HS daughter a few months ago and in the narratives every teacher commented about her being on her phone all the time in class. I was appalled and made it clear to her that I expect her phone to be put away in the classroom, and we have been enforcing that by monitoring her usage and, if we see she's on it when she's in class, shutting it down using our parental controls. But I was also shocked that it was happening at all, because I had been under the impression phones weren't allowed to be out in class. The counselor told me it's a rule with no teeth and that teachers don't want to waste time enforcing it because it just makes their lives harder.
Anonymous
Post 04/28/2022 20:50     Subject: possible cell phone policy change
Anonymous wrote:I’m a high school teacher and parent of kids in elementary and middle school. I read the policy and didn’t think it would change much. Phones are not allowed to be out in my children’s schools in elementary or middle school during the day. My MS kid often complains about “off and away” so I know it’s enforced.

I have not had issues with students and cell phones in high school in many, many years. They just are not a problem anymore. If someone is on it a lot and I give a reminder, they put it away. Phones aren’t the problem.

The huge problem in high school is the laptop. This is what they are using now as a distraction. I don’t use them often in my class because they are constantly on anything except what we are doing. Every since class I have a minimum of 5 students arguing with me that they need to have it open for notes because they work better than that than one paper. It’s the rare case this is true. Often they are watching YouTube or doing something else online.

My middle schooler often tells me stories of how they are all doing similar there on the laptops.


Not sure what parallel universe you live in but I'm also a HS teacher and phone use at our school is just catastrophic.
I try to police the underclassmen who need my class to graduate but it's very, very difficult and frankly, just exhausting to constantly have to interrupt what you're doing to tell someone to put their phone away, only to have them pull it out again a minute later. Multiply that by 25-30 students.
I've completely given up with the upperclassmen in my elective class. Let them fail, see if I care.
Anonymous
Post 04/28/2022 20:15     Subject: possible cell phone policy change
You’d be surprised how many ES kids have phones or Apple watches. My 3rd grader teacher banned watches in her classroom they were becoming such a distraction. An ES that is in my neighborhood had what the kids thought was a fire and they texted their parents. Turns out it wasn’t a fire at all but quite a few parents got the panicky messages.
Anonymous
Post 04/28/2022 19:31     Subject: possible cell phone policy change
Anonymous wrote:I won't touch a kid's phone for fear of liability if it is lost/broken/stolen while it is in my possession before I can get it to the front office, or if they're texting each other naked photos and I accidentally see one flash on the screen, or because it will create a power struggle in class that i have zero desire to instigate.

If the whole school goes phone free my job would become 1000000x easier, but then there need to be serious, enforced consequences for phones that are out during class--not just "it gets taken away for the day"--that's not motivating enough to prevent it happening again.


We have been told to NOT take away phones for the reasons you listed.
Anonymous
Post 04/28/2022 17:51     Subject: Re:possible cell phone policy change
I could see that. That said my kid does need the laptop. It's in his 504. But he is also a straight A student who is just doing his work.
Anonymous
Post 04/28/2022 17:49     Subject: Re:possible cell phone policy change
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:The problem is my kids use them in school everyday for instructional use. Usually can’t get on the school wifi with their school issued laptops or need to visit a site banned by FCPS.


Mom of younger kids here and almost 25 years since I graduated middle school, so please enlighten me…do teachers not hook their laptop up to the Wi-Fi and then project their computer screen onto the wall? (Clearly I’m older than dirt as I don’t understand why all kids in the class would all need to be connected at once.). Why would a teacher need kids to visit a banned site?


Textbooks are digital, problems are online, they work collaboratively in Google docs, a lot of research is now done online. I’m not sure why any of these sites would be banned but they are connected online and to each other for school for a lot of reasons. It’s not to watch the notes.
Anonymous
Post 04/28/2022 17:44     Subject: possible cell phone policy change
I’m a high school teacher and parent of kids in elementary and middle school. I read the policy and didn’t think it would change much. Phones are not allowed to be out in my children’s schools in elementary or middle school during the day. My MS kid often complains about “off and away” so I know it’s enforced.

I have not had issues with students and cell phones in high school in many, many years. They just are not a problem anymore. If someone is on it a lot and I give a reminder, they put it away. Phones aren’t the problem.

The huge problem in high school is the laptop. This is what they are using now as a distraction. I don’t use them often in my class because they are constantly on anything except what we are doing. Every since class I have a minimum of 5 students arguing with me that they need to have it open for notes because they work better than that than one paper. It’s the rare case this is true. Often they are watching YouTube or doing something else online.

My middle schooler often tells me stories of how they are all doing similar there on the laptops.
Anonymous
Post 04/28/2022 17:04     Subject: Re:possible cell phone policy change
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:As a mom of a MS where phones are not allowed - FCPS MS, I was shocked to learn that was not the case at the zoned HS. My DD has ADHD and she needs her phone to not be allowed. I hope this changes by the time she starts next year.

That said, I disagree with punishments that go on a record for phone use (detention, etc...). The punishment for a phone out should be the phone gets taken and only a parent or guardian can come retrieve it from the school.


What? It's not the school's job to police your kid's phone use. Don't give her a phone, give her a dumb phone, turn it off during school hours, i don't know--but don't you think this should be mom and dad's rule, not something else added onto teacher's plates?


But if it's school policy my kid won't be distracted by everyone else on their phones. It's not effective if it's a mom or dad telling a rando kid here or there.
Anonymous
Post 04/28/2022 16:15     Subject: Re:possible cell phone policy change
Anonymous wrote:The problem is my kids use them in school everyday for instructional use. Usually can’t get on the school wifi with their school issued laptops or need to visit a site banned by FCPS.


Mom of younger kids here and almost 25 years since I graduated middle school, so please enlighten me…do teachers not hook their laptop up to the Wi-Fi and then project their computer screen onto the wall? (Clearly I’m older than dirt as I don’t understand why all kids in the class would all need to be connected at once.). Why would a teacher need kids to visit a banned site?
Anonymous
Post 04/28/2022 16:02     Subject: possible cell phone policy change
Anonymous wrote:I won't touch a kid's phone for fear of liability if it is lost/broken/stolen while it is in my possession before I can get it to the front office, or if they're texting each other naked photos and I accidentally see one flash on the screen, or because it will create a power struggle in class that i have zero desire to instigate.

If the whole school goes phone free my job would become 1000000x easier, but then there need to be serious, enforced consequences for phones that are out during class--not just "it gets taken away for the day"--that's not motivating enough to prevent it happening again.


+1000
Anonymous
Post 04/28/2022 16:02     Subject: possible cell phone policy change
Anonymous wrote:I'm a high school teacher and I have given up. Kids are going to play games, text, etc. If they don't do the work I just give them an F. Most kids are good, but some definitely can't handle it.


+1