Custard Trout

Pixie
It's no more offensive - nor any less sensible - than banning mobile phones in classrooms. Which all schools should also do.

WOT?

But when will I phone my friends? I can't do it at home because then the purpose of having a phone that I take to school with me is completely defeated!

THAT IS LIKE SAYING WE SEND OUR OFFSPRING TO SCHOOL TO LEARN THINGS INSTEAD OF TO DICK ABOUT ON THE INTERNET.

LOL! XDXD

I gotta be the devils advocate on one point Pix.
Just as most schools have shop, home ec, machine, driving, and aggy classes they should also have basic PC use classes. Many schools already do. The idea being that school is not strictly academic in nature. People seem to have forgotten that its good to be well rounded and have at least a general knowledge of things they'll find out in the wide world on their own. That goes double for computers.
I do agree with the point on internet during class though. The teacher is the only one in the room that truly needs full network access. For most classes the kids don't even need computers. All of today's prominent geniuses learned on paper not LCD or CRT. I've made it known that I'm a technologist but even I have to admit computers don't need to be fully integrated in the typical classroom.

imshard
I gotta be the devils advocate on one point Pix.
Just as most schools have shop, home ec, machine, driving, and aggy classes they should also have basic PC use classes. Many schools already do. The idea being that school is not strictly academic in nature. People seem to have forgotten that its good to be well rounded and have at least a general knowledge of things they'll find out in the wide world on their own. That goes double for computers.
I do agree with the point on internet during class though. The teacher is the only one in the room that truly needs full network access. For most classes the kids don't even need computers. All of today's prominent geniuses learned on paper not LCD or CRT. I've made it known that I'm a technologist but even I have to admit computers don't need to be fully integrated in the typical classroom.

I completely agree; as life skills go, learning to use a computer is a pretty essential one.

On the other hand, I'd argue the thing kids need least these days is tutoring in computers. Most of them seem more than capable of teaching that to themselves, in their own spare time. ;) The sheer number of young people online (versus us old fogies who didn't grow up with the internet) is fair proof of this. The only thing I really worry about (with kids and new technology) is the way our language seems to be totally going down the toilet in favour of shortened, online forms. That's a bit depressing.

But that probably just makes me old and out of touch, I suppose. XD

Pixie
And that's not taking kids back thirty years in terms of technology, not at all. It's no more offensive - nor any less sensible - than banning mobile phones in classrooms. Which all schools should also do.

WHoa, whoa whoa. At least in high school, a cell phone was a necessity because of AFTER school. Granted, phones in class rooms are a hideous distraction and often used for cheating, but you can't ban them in classes without banning them from schools in their entirety, and that's a horrible thing, imo. The days I would forget my phone and have to call my parents about some project I had to stay to do, or go to someone's house unexpectedly, were horrible. Yes, school offices have phones, but that's such a pain. And what if you were going to spend an extended time after school somewhere else?

My school's policy was that cell phones couldn't be visible on school grounds during school hours, including lunch. That made sense. You could have them in your backpack (in fact it was encouraged), but not out until the last bell rang at 2:10.

suzi

Pixie
And that's not taking kids back thirty years in terms of technology, not at all. It's no more offensive - nor any less sensible - than banning mobile phones in classrooms. Which all schools should also do.

WHoa, whoa whoa. At least in high school, a cell phone was a necessity because of AFTER school. Granted, phones in class rooms are a hideous distraction and often used for cheating, but you can't ban them in classes without banning them from schools in their entirety, and that's a horrible thing, imo. The days I would forget my phone and have to call my parents about some project I had to stay to do, or go to someone's house unexpectedly, were horrible. Yes, school offices have phones, but that's such a pain. And what if you were going to spend an extended time after school somewhere else?

My school's policy was that cell phones couldn't be visible on school grounds during school hours, including lunch. That made sense. You could have them in your backpack (in fact it was encouraged), but not out until the last bell rang at 2:10.

Wow. Well, I guess at school the twenty pence I kept in my pocket for such emergencies was stupid. I guess I got kidnapped and raped and left in a hole, dead because I never had a mobile. I guess public phones don't exist any more.

…

Yeah, whatever. Keep them out of school. Switched off all day long. I don't care if you've got them in your backpack, switched off - that's fine. Just don't have them going off in lessons - don't be texting that hawt guy that you want him during geography.

For fuck's sake. Anyone would think I grew up in the fucking stone age. If I take your mobile phone away, you won't die, you know. It's not as important as you seem to think - amazingly, shockingly, we survived without them.

I wholeheartedly agree with what's said about mobile phones. When in school: OFF. I only carry mine around for emergencies (which was used when the London Bombings went off and when there were flooding). Gosh, I would actually love a world without mobiles, it's really annoying when the dick behind you is blaring noise out of it when you try to take a simple bus ride home.

Also, I can't text. I fail at being a teenager. D:

Pixie
I guess public phones don't exist any more.

Correct, at least in southern California.

AQua_ng
Also, I can't text. I fail at being a teenager. D:

I fail as a human.
I win!

please explain why you fail?