TELECOM Digest OnLine - Sorted: Should Kids Have Cell Phones in School?

Should Kids Have Cell Phones in School?

Should kids be even allowed to bring a phone into the building? If
so, should it be allowed with them?

I am curious as to what other people think of this issue. It is
presently controversial.

Generally speaking I don't think kids "need" cell phones; for a kid
they're generally a luxury rather than a need.

I don't buy the argument that parents need to be able to reach their
kids "since 9/11". "9/11" was a once in a lifetime event. Other
disasters, natural or man-created can of course happen, but they are
rare, too.

However, the argument that pay phones are no longer available is
unfortunately valid in most places. I've seen lots of places where
pay phones were pulled (like the local public library). School kids
tell me they were pulled in school as a result of prank call abuse.

I don't like the idea that middle school age kids are so interdependent
on the outside world that they need cells phones to deal with it.
Parents should be available for their kids directly, not over the
phone; I don't like parents using the phone as a crutch as too many
do. Kids tell mom "I'm at the library" when in reality they're
somewhere they shouldn't be.

Some companies (including Disney) are advertising GPS/monitoring phones
for their kids. I don't like the idea of parents becoming "Big
Brother" either, that makes me really uncomfortable. It's like saying
to the kids "Oh, we trust you. Well, actually we don't trust you." I
was a goody-goody growing up, but I'd resent as hell secret attempts by
my parents to monitor my whereabouts. I think the first thing I'd do
would be to figure out how to defeat the tracking.

Unfortunately today high school kids have much more adult
responsibilities than in our day. Having a cell phone is almost a
necessity. High school age kids today work after school. They have
varied after school activities. They have no public transit and are
dependent on the car. They have split parents who both work.

Any thoughts?

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