After this week’s class, there are a few things that I myself question about cell phone jails. For instance, when Joanna took our phones without any reason in class, I did not question her. Even when she asked for our apple watches, I still didn’t. It wasn’t until she said, “is anyone going to ask why I did this?” I actually then questioned her motive behind the activity.

Why didn’t students ever ask their teacher why they were taking our phones away? Why didn’t we ask them why we needed to put them in the box before we entered the room? I believe the reason why was because teachers didn’t want to have to explain to each class their boundaries on phones. They did want to trust us, just not enough with our phones. I have a doctor’s note written that I must always have access to my phone as it reads my blood sugar. While, yes, in some cases this note would seem necessary but for the most part it shouldn’t be. All staff were aware of my disease, there was a big picture of myself in the staff room stating I have type one diabetes. Yet still in high school, there were few teachers who wouldn’t trust us with our phones so it either went into the bin or our backpack. Phones never to be seen until after class.     

One thing I took away from having Jesse as our guest speaker was to set clear boundaries with students around their devices. Allowing breaks for them to go on their phones and check what needs to be checked. Then after those breaks allow them to leave their phones on their desks or in their bags, wherever they feel it is the most comfortable for them.  Making it clear that during lesson time there were to be no phones but during breaks they were allowed to go on them.

Photo by Francois Hoang on Unsplash

Currently, in the school I am visiting the only devices used are the computer and the smartboard. I only see the teachers use the computer and occasionally the students are able to use the whiteboard for activities. While I have been told there are iPads that the students will be able to use, I have yet to see them in action. However, when we do see them start using it, it will be interesting how my teacher lays out her expectations. 

Feature Image: Photo by Author