The Board of Education passed a pilot program June 12 which will give middle and high school students a chance to use their cell phones during lunch. After negotiations with all the unions and the staff, the Board of Education decided to test pilot the program in order to make sure this really was going to work.  However, due to the controversies introduced in allowing students to use their cell phones during lunch, a trial of the program has been set up this year in a few schools to test how successful it will be.

 

            The original legislation planned for all middle and high school students to be allowed to use their cell phones during lunch. Consultants of the National School Safety and Security Services (NSSSS) opposed the idea. Consultants from the Principal's Union, the Teacher's Union and Service Employees International Union (SEIU) said the idea should probably be looked into more. The three organizations have these opinions for a variety of measures.

            “The reason is because of cheating, continuity, sexting, pornography and terrorism,” Student Member of Board (SMOB) Tim Hwang said. 

 

However, Hwang argues that allowing the usage of cell phones would give students the chance to contact their parents, coordinate schedules and make their lives easier. His argument is that if you give students an inch in freedom, students will take it and stop texting in class because they know there is a designated time for it. On the other hand, opponents argue that if we give students an inch, they will stretch it to a mile.

 

            Students in schools with different lunches can easily fall victim to cheating. What is there to stop a student with an earlier lunch to text his friend the answers to a test? While this program trusts that students will turn off their cell phones during class, some students may continue to further abuse their privileges by keeping their cell phones on. If a student receives a bullying statement or sexting message during school, the school administration is suddenly liable for creating an environment where that is possible. There are blocks on the school system computer for a reason – so that no students can access pornography or terrorism.  With the advent of new 3G and 4G technology, it is entirely possible for these advents to be accessed in school, making the school completely liable for the actions of its students.

 

            “We expect that if students know that there is a designated time for cell phone use, the usage of cell phones in classrooms will go down. We are also looking to make sure that no cheating, sexting or threats happen as a result of this pilot. Hopefully, students will pay more attention in class than texting each other. As of right now, I have heard of Blair piloting this program and the principal at Watkins Mill has shown interest last year,” Hwang said.

 

            If the pilot program proves to be successful, then middle and high school students will be allowed to have cell phones allowed during school hours only during lunch times.