"Txting away ur education"

Frankly, I think it's stupid that students can not have a cell phone or other electronic devices at GRADUATION. It's their special day, and they should be able to choose how to spend that day. Actually, I don't think students should be required to have their electronic equipment tucked away except for during tests, etc. as long as it is not distracting other students' learning environment. Some students work better listening to music. If a student studies with music at home, playing that same music while working helps them to recall the information. Also, if a relative is sick or if something happens to the students' transportation (or lunch money, whatever) there should be no problem with the student receiving a text in class versus the old-fashioned way of disrupting the classroom to page the student and then have the student down to the office to handle the situation, which only adds to the student missing out on more of the lecture. While I do agree with the points made in the article about how distracting a text can be and that text language is being incorporated with essay writing, I do not think that it is a device that should be confiscated. A teacher can only teach a student who is willing to learn, and if they can multi-task, then they should be rewarded (not punished), and if they can't focus with the cell phone, then they should develop the self-knowledge necessary to take out the distraction. Having their personal property sieged for twenty-four hours really does not teach them the lesson that administration is hoping for, it only agitates the student and fosters a more hostile learning environment.