Keep cell phones out of class

There are few things in this world more annoying than sitting in a classroom about 20 minutes into a test when someone’s cell phone goes off. As if the late night of studying and gallons of Dr Pepper aren’t already making you edgy, the silence of concentration, now broken by a pitchy ring tone, can definitely affect not only how well you do on the test, but in extreme terms, whether or not you pass the class.

The U’s cell phone policy is left to the discretion of professors. Most teachers will permit phones in class, but insist that they must be turned off during a lecture.

The State Board of Education in Utah is beginning to crack down even harder on the problem.

Itracks, an online data collection company, polled 1,000 teens across North America in August and found that 38 percent of teens surveyed text message with friends during school hours. Thirty percent of students said they have played games on their phones while at school.

Educators fear students use their cell phones inappropriately, swapping pictures, passing notes, even cheating on tests. The State Board of Education wants to prevent these things by requiring every district in the state to create a cell phone policy by next spring. Although this initiative only applies to K-12 schools across the state, the U would be better off taking a hard stand against cell phones in the classroom.

Unless students are able to control their compulsive texting habits, cell phones should be checked at the classroom door. Professors should tell students at the beginning of the term that if a phone goes off in class, some consequence will follow and then enforce those consequences.

Of course there are emergency situations in which a cell phone is a necessary tool for help and protection, but they are a disruption in classrooms all across the U. It’s time for students across campus to hang up their phones and put their full effort into getting an education instead of entertaining themselves with an electronic gadget.

http://www.dailyutahchronicle.com/opinion/1.778323