If you haven't heard yet, smart phones in schools is becoming a pretty realistic consideration for a lot of schools. They bring a lot of benefits, as talked about all over this site, but they also bring some risks. An online site called Lisa Nielsen gives us a few reasons why we should perhaps reconsider in an article called Should Smart Phones be Banned from Schools? 

           In this article a lot of legitimate concerns are addressed for possible problems with smart phones in school. There is the concern of bullying and rumor spreading using smart phones There is also a concern of using smart phones on tests to cheat. What if a student forgets to bring their phone to class that day?

            I think that there are solutions to all potential roadblocks though. For instance lets take the bullying situation. First off lets get the cop-out answer out of the way: Kids are gonna be bullies over the internet whether the school provides them smart phones or not. This is a crappy answer that lacks a solution. Lets try this instead: If schools provide students with smart phones then they also have to ability and right to search phones for evidence of bullying or harassment. To do this parents of the students and the students would need to sign a contract that allows this. This would stop bullying and punish those who tried. 

           The next issue is cheating on test. Again students who are gonna cheat are gonna cheat, smart phones do make this easier. However if the school issues the smart phones then they have control in knowing who has a smart phone to cheat with which in this case would be everyone. So simply have a collection basket in which students place phones in before tests.

            A lot of the potential issues that we have with smart phones can be solved by knowing that the school has the power to decide how they are used. This makes smart phones an effective and safe learning tool. 

          The video above is a video takes a compilation of interviews from a school district that has implemented a smart phone program. "Project K-Nect" gives smart phones to students within the school district to use in academic scenarios. This video discusses all of the benefits that are to be had from these smart phones. Interviews are taken from teachers, PSA members, parents, students, and principles. 

        Everyone agrees that this new system has been a success for everyone. Kids are learning and interacting which is the ultimate goal. There are numerous benefits discussed in the video from the students using these smart phones. These benefits range anywhere from solving math equations, to helping out others figure out homework, and all the way to helping students socialize and gain friends. 

         With more and more school districts experimenting with smart phones every year we are on our way to a new learning environment. This new style of learning could change classrooms forever. There are even schools who do not require their students to be on campus everyday because some of the classes can be taught online (as stated in a news report). This may or may not have negative ramifications however. What if students stop going to class and start slacking off? Just like every other new adventure we will have to deal with the roadblocks as they present themselves.

       There are a variety of ways that smart phones can be implemented into the classroom. They can be used for notes, working on assignments, checking grades, taking pictures or videos of in-class examples to later reference. However these functions are not the functions that teachers are worried about.

       Teachers are more concerned about apps like Facebook and Twitter and smart phone functions like texting. These apps are the usual suspects for distraction of kids. However there are also ways that teachers can harness to true power of these apps and turn them into a creative and innovative teaching strategy that helps to engage kids. Edudemic is an online site that concentrates on ways to integrate new technologies into the classroom. An article written by Katie Lepi discusses 3 ways that we can use these distracting apps to help educate students.

       In the article they talk about how teachers can hold "virtual office hours" by texting students. This makes it easier for kids to contact teachers during busy days (however the teachers would need to lay down ground rules for appropriate texting times). Another neat idea is allowing students to use Facebook or Twitter to make an discussion board. There are a lot of great ways to utilize smart phones while also diminishing their distraction value. The list provided here is not exhausted and there are plenty of ways to encourage use of smart phones in the classroom that fosters an engaging learning environment. 

      As a college student myself, I think a classroom based around technology would be pretty cool. That being said I also believe that these courses would have to be well designed so that students did not have a chance to get distracted on their devices. Classrooms would have to be interactive and engaging. This would be possible through apps like iClicker which allows for students to take pop quizzes. Another possible use would be a Facebook or Twitter page where students can comment during class (talked about in another blog). Imagine you are in a science class when the professor runs a cool experiment and you would like to video record it so you can remember it. Technology would allow you to do that.

       This is my personal opinion. There are a lot... A LOT of other opinions out there on the matter. Here the clip below shares some opinions from other students on the matter.

   Another Edudemic article about  smart phones. This one was written by Jeff Dunn and it focuses on the advantages of smart phones to students. This article is useful if you are not sure what apps students use the most. In the article he discusses the different uses for apps and what apps are used the most. 

     Another cool thing about this article (and now this blog) is the infographic that comes with it. The infrographic was provided by Online Colleges. It has all of the useful information as to why teachers should consider using smart phones in their classroom. For instance did you know that students who use smart phones for studying study about 40 more minutes a week than those who don't. And that students who use smart phones are also three times more likely to check their grades. This is all due to convenience. Check out the other cool information in this inforgraphic below.