Cell Phones; Educational Tools?

Cell phones have been quite a topic at our school for a year or two now. How do we give kids the access they need to get in touch with parents vs. having them on their person during school hours and using them for what educators consider to be non-educational uses? I am sure we are not alone in this problem. I know we are taking a much tougher stance towards having them on their person when the new school year begins.

However, there is another "school of thought" about how cell phones could be used in an educational setting. I was first introduced to this idea at the ICE conference I attended last January in Indianapolis. They were talking about using phones as a way to get students more involved in learning. As one instructor said, "Let's teach them with the tools they are familiar with and most comfortable with." Many of our teachers find the new technology a bit overwhelming, so instead of jumping in and learning with (and from) the students, they tend to not use it at all. I think we have to be willing to learn things that take us out of our comfort zones. While working on my assignments for the class I am taking on Web 2.0 tools, I came across an article by Marc Prensky about using cell (mobile) phones in learning. The article was called "Mobile Phone Imagination--using devices kids love for their education." In this article he lists many different ideas about how phones could be used in an educational way. This article was published in 2005 and many of the "what ifs" are now standard parts of most new phones. He suggests that phones be used to help kids learn science using GPS systems in many of today's mobile phones, and maybe even using their cell phone cameras to take pictures that can then be used in a science or math classroom.

Although I understand and even sympathize with administrators, I have to think that maybe Mr. Prensky is not way off the mark. Kids do not learn the way they did even 10-15 years ago. (maybe less than that) More and more of them are digital and visual learners, and we need to begin to think about new ways to reach those students. That doesn't mean that I think that we should throw out everything we do now, but I do believe that teachers at all levels need to accept the fact that new technology is not going away, and if we don't educate ourselves about how to integrate it into our curriculum, we will find more and more students disengaged from learning. I will probably be blogging about a few more of Marc Prensky's articles because he has struck a cord with me.