We Can Hear You Now
How to Reach Out and Touch Your Student During the School Day
by Paul Massman
August 19, 2008
We have one "pay" phone available in the high school located by the big gym in the southeast corner of the building. It costs nothing, but will only dial out locally. If students mistreat it...it will "die." There is also a regular phone available for student use in the Attendance Office on the counter, so don't let our scarcity of "pay" phones be used to justify any additional expenses...
We allow students to carry cell phones for use outside the school day. Our Student Handbook does specify that they are turned off. These phones can be real nuisances in classrooms; students feel that even text messages must be answered "right now" when they go "off." Class comes first; it has to since it provides the credit for the diploma.
There are some students and parents who find this unreasonable, and demand instant access. We find that unreasonable, given our purpose as an institution. Our system can handle this...
If you need to reach your student, use our office phone numbers and we will send a message to them to contact you after class using a legal phone. We won't call them out of class to do this, but there is enough "slack" in the day to meet the need to communicate. Of course emergencies get very different treatment, but help us keep the priority on classes and class work where it truly belongs.
We can even handle a need for privacy, if we are told. (We don't read minds...) Help us handle this communications revolution that is replacing chewing gum and spit wads as a thing to fight about between students and adults. Losing class time over having a cell phone out is not a wise investment of energy or time. Emphasize this with your student, please. We have and will continue to do so.
