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return2ozma @lemmy.world

8mo ago

2nd-largest school district, Los Angeles Unified School District, votes to ban cellphone and social media for students starting in 2025

abcnews.go.com 2nd-largest school district votes to ban cellphone and social media for students

The governing board of the Los Angeles Unified School District has voted to ban cellphone and social media use for students during school days.

2nd-largest school district votes to ban cellphone and social media for students

39 comments

I hate that my first thought about my kid not having a cell phone at school is that I won't get a call from them if someone shoots up their school and will be panicking the entire way there.
- Honestly, that's better than knowing they have a phone and not getting called.
  
  And you'd be panicking either way
- I feel the same way.
  There was an article about a boarding school that gave all the students dumb phones. I wonder if that’s an option, like schools issue kids computers.

and social media
is this going to be another one of those 'schools think they can parent outside of school hours' overreach?
- Sounds like it and the other is something that I thought schools have been doing since cell phones have been a thing...
  Edit: >from using cellphones and social media platforms during the school day.
  Oh nope, just in school which is fine ig
  
  The only concern I have is that, unfortunately, we live in a country with a lot of school shootings and phones have given kids a link to the outside when that is happening.
  
  but youre not wrong. both of these issues have already been resolved by many schools by just having kids bucket their phones on the way in...
- during school days.
  Literally, the first sentence. So, no. Not even the first school to ban cell phone use during the school day.
- When I was in middle school I remember the campus security (I don’t think we called them “security”) had some sort of lecture on the dangers of social media (this was circa 2004). I don’t recall details but they basically said the person in charge of security was supposedly lurking on MySpace to see what we were doing. Pretty lame and did nothing for seemingly nothing reasons.

This is going to be less effective and less popular than the prohibition of cannabis.

Not exactly related, but I remember being given instructions for what to do with your cellphone during a shooting, bomb threat, etc. The plan was to at regular intervals (maybe 10 minutes?) text that you were okay to parents, and then shut off phones so the communication wasn't flooded. Bc I'm proud to be an American!
- This would be funny if it was not real

I get that it sucks to not be able to contact your kid via phone at school...
But this is a good move.
First, I'm gonna be blunt here, even in the event of a school shooting or other emergency, having vs not having a personal phone is not likely to make a difference. Teachers, Admin Staff and offices have phones. Parents can call the school, School can call parents. Staff have training, procedures and supplies for personal medical emergencies.
I grew up as cellphones were becoming a thing. I was in highschool when the Razr was the coolest thing you could have.
Pulling out a phone in class? Warning. Do it again? Confiscated till the end of the period. Recieve an actually important call? Go outside the classroom and take the call so as not to disrupt the class.
It is not like that any more.
There are many schools and classes these days where basically all the kids are using their phones basically all the time to the point that actually teaching/learning is impossible unless you want to confiscate the whole classes phones... and that does not work because often some students or most of the class will become physically violent to prevent this from happening.
Cell phone free classrooms make teaching and learning significantly easier.
They would not be taking this drastic of a step if cellphone usage by students was not seriously negatively impacting the ability to educate them.

So let me get this straight, we're letting Republicans treat public schools like extermination camps now

39 comments