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Protest over cell phone ban continues

Author: Tanangachi Mfuni

Mfuni, Tanangachi. “Protest over Cell Phone Ban Continues.” New York Amsterdam News, vol. 97, no. 19, 4 May 2006, p. 3. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=20832487&site=ehost-live.

As high school students took to the streets of Brooklyn on Tuesday for the second time in less than a month to protest a citywide rule banning cell phones in public schools, they got seeming support from an unlikely source.

The city's teachers' union passed a resolution this week, stating each school should be allowed to create and enforce their individual cell phone policy, rather than be subject to the Department of Education's blanket policy.

"Whereas, this Administration pays lip service to empowering administration and staff to maintain orderly schools, but does not trust them to deal with incidents of cell phone abuse; be it resolved, that in lieu of banning the possession of student cell phones outright, each school develop and enforce a policy prohibiting cell phone use by students in the school building," reads the resolution adopted unanimously by the approximately 90 members of the United Federation of Teachers' (UFT) executive board May 1.

Krystle Guejuste, the junior at the Secondary School for Law, Journalism and Research arrested with four students in the April 12 walkout she helped organize, received the union's show of support warily.

"I believe that there's a negative and positive to that," said Guejuste, who led students from her secondary school to the Department of Education's regional superintendent offices on Livingston Street last Tuesday.

"Putting the power into the schools' hands is a good thing, but it's also a negative thing because the schools won't be getting the same treatment all around the board," said Guejuste, joined by dozens of protesters from her Trust Us student coalition as well as members of 100 Blacks in Law Enforcement, who have stood in support of the students.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg said in a press conference hours before Tuesday's demonstration, "I don't think that any responsible person can make the case that iPods and Blackberrys and cell phones and other electronic devices should be in the classroom when our teachers are working as hard as they possibly can to teach our children what they're supposed to know."

While teachers' union president Randi Weingarten agrees cell phones are a distraction and should be banned from school buildings, she also argues they are a vital means of communication between students and their guardians.

"Cell phones are a lifeline for many parents and students. We agree with the prohibition of cell phone use in buildings, but we need to have a balance."

The Department of Education has shown little leniency on the matter.

"We're sympathetic to the concerns of parents," said DOE spokesperson Alicia Maxey, "But our experience is that if cell phones are allowed into schools, they will be used. And when they are, whether for talking or messaging or taking photos, they inevitably interrupt the school's learning environment."

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By Tanangachi Mfuni, Amsterdam News Staff

DMU Timestamp: February 03, 2020 23:30

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Feb 4

Christopher Sloan Christopher Sloan (Feb 04 2020 4:12PM) : article is from 2006 more

Looks like New York City wrestled with this over ten years ago, but maybe the times and circumstances were different.

Feb 5

Jack Libin Jack Libin (Feb 05 2021 11:13AM) : It's crazy to think now most of school activities are done on electronic devices like phones and computers

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Feb 4

Christopher Sloan Christopher Sloan (Feb 04 2020 4:13PM) : teachers advocated for each school to make their own decisions

Mar 6

2020 Jayme Mintz 2020 Jayme Mintz (Mar 06 2020 2:59PM) : Teacher Involvement more

I think the fact that teachers are having input on this is extremely significant. It’s easy to dismiss either side as being biased towards one side of the argument, so seeing that both sides can see both perspectives interchangeably had made strides to getting to the root of the issue.

Mar 6

2020 Emma Wills 2020 Emma Wills (Mar 06 2020 4:34PM) : I also think trends vary across the country. One school may have a bigger problem or a different problem regarding cell phones so certain rules may not apply to every school.

Mar 6

italia perez italia perez (Mar 06 2020 3:50PM) : This worries me because, like they said, the policy won't all be the same. And kids that attend schools in which there are teachers who don't won't get the discipline they need to invest in their future.

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Mar 8

2020 Abraham Gaucin 2020 Abraham Gaucin (Mar 08 2020 11:55PM) : Allowing each school to create their own cell phone policies, enables schools to focus on specific factors that cause a larger problem.

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Mar 6

Michael Stokes Michael Stokes (Mar 06 2020 1:36PM) : Schools and Cell Phones more

There are persistent differences in schools across America, from access to funding to diversity. Each demographic will be different, so it will be hard to regulate across the board. However, schools are also the closest to the problem, so it makes sense to give them hands on control.

Mar 6

2020 Emmy Darling 2020 Emmy Darling (Mar 06 2020 1:38PM) : If schools have varying policies between phone usage then kids in different schools will have different experiences and possible different levels of phone addiction and focusing abilities.

Mar 6

2020 Emily Leary 2020 Emily Leary (Mar 06 2020 1:39PM) : Opinion more

I agree with this perspective. This is why I think a wholesale ban would be ineffective.

Mar 6

Megan McCoy Megan McCoy (Mar 06 2020 4:15PM) : I agree that it should be a school to school decision, not a nationally enforced law.

Mar 6

2020 Emma Wills 2020 Emma Wills (Mar 06 2020 4:41PM) : With the varying phone policies from school to school, there will be a discrepancy amongst students. Like Emmy said this could mean that students will have different levels of phone addiction and focusing abilities based on their school's unique policy. more

I also think that the problem would be lessened if each school holds the same level of determination towards cell phone policy and have a consist objective across the nation.

Mar 8

2020 Ella Kittrell 2020 Ella Kittrell (Mar 08 2020 4:38PM) : There are clear positives and negatives to putting the issue in the hands of schools. I think it is a good thing, and it is fair for a school to make their own rules about how their place is run.

Mar 8

Samuel Maxwell Samuel Maxwell (Mar 08 2020 7:03PM) : Different policies in schools will create a larger disparity of phone addiction within school districts. Some schools will experience less addiction than others, but if the whole district made one single rule, the addiction rate would be more similar.

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Mar 6

Mr Gedeon Baende Mr Gedeon Baende (Mar 06 2020 1:34PM) : I disagree bc phones are a great tool even in the classroom as long as it doesn't disturb the learning process.

Mar 6

Amaia Horyna Amaia Horyna (Mar 06 2020 1:47PM) : banning phones from new york schools more

I disagree because I believe educators should be helping students develop healthy relationships with their devices. Smartphones are a reality students face outside of school and one they will continue to face in college and beyond. If we just take phones away and do not teach kids how to use them responsibly, I believe it will be extremely detrimental for students once they go to college and join the workforce as they will have never learned how to utilize their phone responsibly and independently.

Mar 6

2020 Natalie Risse 2020 Natalie Risse (Mar 06 2020 1:45PM) : What? I see that teachers can have students get distracted because of phones but Blackberrys? I think this could've been phrased better.

Mar 6

2020 Isabella DiNardo 2020 Isabella DiNardo (Mar 06 2020 1:47PM) : I believe that phones can have a place in the classroom if they are not distracting from the learning experience. They can be used as fun tools to promote learning if used responsibly.

Mar 6

Olivia Anderson Olivia Anderson (Mar 06 2020 4:22PM) : I disagree with this because sometimes phones are a valuable learning tool, and I think in the future we should have classes to teach kids how to use phones properly.

Mar 6

2020 Kaitlyn Taylor 2020 Kaitlyn Taylor (Mar 06 2020 4:22PM) : Strong argument more

This is a very strong argument. Teachers do work very hard, and on not a lot of pay, so if students are on their phones, all the hard work the teachers put out is put to waste and it is not fair to the teachers. However, a lot of teachers have their own individual ways to deal with this problem, like having phone pockets in their classroom for their students to put in.

Mar 6

Ellie Han Ellie Han (Mar 06 2020 4:37PM) : I disagree with Mayor Bloomberg's notion because high school is supposed to be a learning environment that preps you for real life situations and adulthood. In the future, students will have no factors restricting them and they won't know how to manage.

Mar 8

2020 Hannah Gose 2020 Hannah Gose (Mar 08 2020 10:12PM) : Agree and Disagree more

I believe that phones can be used as an important learning tool in the classrooms. Technology is constantly advancing, so when you replace the cell phone there will be something new for teens to be distracted with eventually. I do believe that cell phones should only be used with teacher consent

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Mar 5

2020 Alexander Nuntapreda 2020 Alexander Nuntapreda (Mar 05 2020 10:21PM) : Phones, while they are nice to have in a school building to quickly look something up or show people something, can often serve as a distraction. They really are not necessary in school when it comes to pure statistics.

Mar 6

Jonathan Barnhart Jonathan Barnhart (Mar 06 2020 4:17PM) : Distractions more

There is no doubt that phones are a distraction. While it is a means of communication for being picked up after school, communication during the day about later events, and other things, school is meant to learn and phones steer people away from that.

Mar 6

Dominic Malouf Dominic Malouf (Mar 06 2020 4:18PM) : This argument does show good reason for having phones in school, but it would help build independence if kids didn't have contact with their parents 24/7 and instead could talk to them only before and after school

Mar 9

Viviana Garcia Viviana Garcia (Mar 09 2020 12:53PM) : They can be a distraction in the classroom, but they can also be a tool that students can be taught how to use. School administrators should teach us how to use things responsibley instead of banning them altogether.

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Mar 6

Alysa Gribben Alysa Gribben (Mar 06 2020 1:31PM) : Cell phones do allow us to connect with the world and sometimes it is necessary to use. However, it distracts us from the main goal in school which is to learn. School is also important for socializing, but phones prevent that from happening.

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Mar 6

2020 Tomas Young 2020 Tomas Young (Mar 06 2020 1:22PM) : Cell phones, if used correctly are vital for communication and connection for safety. However, they can be distracting, and can even lead to bullying and anxiety. more

The phone policies being up to individual schools allows for rules and regulations prescribed for an individual school. I don’t know if it would help if a school board had universal regulations.

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Feb 4

Christopher Sloan Christopher Sloan (Feb 04 2020 4:14PM) : what does this balance look like?

Mar 6

Galactic Chancellor Elliot Gleich Galactic Chancellor Elliot Gleich (Mar 06 2020 1:42PM) : It is all about the balance between accessibility and overuse. They are effective tools for searching information, but we need to have rules to limit endless scrolling on social media and use of apps that have no function in classrooms.

Mar 6

2020 Samuel Huntsman 2020 Samuel Huntsman (Mar 06 2020 4:25PM) : I think this is what should be implemented at judge instead of the idea that phones are always horrible and we can never be on them and will be punished if so. A healthy balance should include a non dependance on the device but using it for its resources.

Mar 6

2020 Abbey Storms 2020 Abbey Storms (Mar 06 2020 4:33PM) : There should be some way to have limited use during class but still not ban phones because if teachers and students use them in the right ways they can be helpful teaching tools.

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Mar 9

erica Strand erica Strand (Mar 09 2020 4:17PM) : The Department of education has the power to restrict cell phone use, but whatever they say will be implemented nationwide, so they need to make sure research and the majority of school leadership supports them.

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Mar 6

2020 Amani Badran 2020 Amani Badran (Mar 06 2020 1:38PM) : I agree that by allowing phones to be in school they will become a distraction. But I think we should come up with a better system for how we go about phones in school.

Mar 7

Kathryn Vargas Kathryn Vargas (Mar 07 2020 10:57PM) : The use of cell phones can definitely be distracting for the learning environment but in secondary education its important to acknowledge that students are not needed to be babysat and that actions have consequences that may negative for students.

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Feb 4

Christopher Sloan Christopher Sloan (Feb 04 2020 4:15PM) : DOE spokesperson sees cell phones as distractions, not learning tools.

Mar 8

Tiffany Bresnan Tiffany Bresnan (Mar 08 2020 7:36PM) : Cell phones can be seen as a distraction, but its also an everyday tool that is used by most of the population. Taking away a teenagers's cell phone can lead to them worrying about their phone, instead of focusing in class.

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