70 percent of schools that had bans on phone usage in schools five years ago have since reversed those bans. Including the largest school district in the United States, the New York City School District. Cell phones have been integrated into our modern world and our everyday lives over the past decade, and now cell phones are seen as a necessity for many students and teachers. Cell phones provide many learning and collaborative opportunities for students as well as a way to communicate with parents or authorities in emergency situations. Although cell phones can be distracting in a learning environment, they allow the students, teachers, and schools to take advantage of new technology as a resource for communication and innovation.
Communication has become very mobile over the past decade, most homes no longer even have landline phones. Cell phones now provide a way for parents/siblings to contact each other during the day for rides or changes in plans. During Bloomberg administration, the Mayor of New York, many parents complained to the school board with concerns, arguing that they need “to be able to easily contact their kids” (Keima 1). The successor of Mayor Bloomberg, Mayor Bill De Blasio, sided with the parents and changed the policy in order for the students and parents to feel safer. Along with contacting parents, students can contact police authorities, paramedics, or the fire department in emergency situations that cannot be foreseen. Cell phones could save lives