Mobile phones sum up many of the things that are wrong in schools in modern Britain. They have become, quite simply, the scourge of the classroom. – dailymail.co.uk
IT WAS MY DISTINCT PLEASURE to have sat with economist Mr Ryan Straughn on numerous occasions while moderating talk shows at Starcom Network over many years. I was always impressed with the analyses he brought to bear on economic issues affecting the society. I admired his passion even though, like the rest of his colleagues, he had no magic wand to wave to fix our economic woes. Outside of this context I do not know Ryan Straughn.
Mr Straughn had the honour of returning to his alma mater, or what he would call the University of Waterford, to give an address at the recently held speech day. I am not sure what the theme of his address was, but it seemed that nostalgia kicked in and Mr Straughn took a swipe at the policy of the Ministry of Education, Science, Technology and Innovation with respect to the ban on cellular phones.
I guess Ryan was recalling his formative years in the school’s auditorium as a little boy and recognizing that he is now speaking as an economic guru, he got a bit carried away and actually described the cellphone policy as “ridiculous”, much to the pleasure and excitement of his youthful audience, many of whom would actually be in constant breach of the said policy.
As the responsible citizens that we are we must be cautious about how we go about giving young people fodder for the violation of rules and even laws. As a proud Combermerian – in the traditions of late Prime Minister David Thompson, I am sure – Mr Straughn would not want it to be said that he encouraged the young people of his alma mater to break the law because it was perceived to be ridiculous.
I could comment on some of the sweeping statements made by the former president of the Barbados Economic Society, but my main focus is his reference to the cellphone policy as “ridiculous”. The ban on cellphones is not a simple matter.
I acknowledge that it would be good if we were at the point where we could allow our students to bring the cellular phones to school without fearing the adverse impact their presence would have on the learning environment. Indeed, the cellular phone could prove an excellent tool in the learning process, if the advantages outweighed the disadvantages.
Sir Michael Wilshaw, chief inspector of schools in Britain, is being applauded for the strong, or should I say the “straughn”, stance he is taking to deal with what the Daily Mail describes as the “scourge of the classroom”.
The ban is part of OFSTED crackdown on discipline system-wide. Schools will be penalized for failing to tackle persistent low-level disruption in lessons under a tough new inspection regime being introduced. It could force school administrators to forbid mobile phone use by pupils including texting, taking calls, surfing the Web and frequenting porn sites while in class. Failing this, their school will be marked down by inspectors. (dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-2142640)
Mr Straughn’s short visit to his alma mater would have been inadequate to give him an informed perspective from which to comment with any degree of accuracy on the cellphone issue. The cellphone has proven to be a security risk. It sets up its carrier as a target of theft and violence. I know of what I speak because I lost a fifteen-year-old student with much potential over a cellphone. It is a serious distraction at the level of the classroom. It is an instrument of cyberbullying. The cellphone has compromised the integrity of CXC examinations to the extent that any student caught cheating via cell technology risks a ban from all examinations for a year.
While I would not describe the policy as “ridiculous”, given the current state of affairs, I acknowledge that as we embrace more and more technology tools in our schools, the time will come when the cellular phone will not be an issue. The existence of tablets, Kindles and the like will cause cell technology to exert less pressure or impact on the culture of schools. If at all the school’s curriculum can be placed on the cell platform, it will open a whole new vista of opportunities for educational practitioners and even economists like Mr Ryan Straughn. I am not sure we are there yet.
• Matthew Farley is a secondary school principal, chairman of the National Forum on Education and a social commentator. Email [email protected]
