Over the past few weeks I have posted many pieces on the difference between neighborhood and magnet schools as seen through my eyes. A lot of those posts have pointed out features of magnet schools that might make a teacher's life easier and all for good reason. Unfortunately, there are some things that the teenagers of today are still going to do that can be very aggravating across the board.

I am, of course, talking about inappropriate cell phone use. Unfortunately it is a problem every teacher has to deal with in one case or another. Some schools are probably worse than others (I've heard stories of students answering the phone in the middle of class) but I can safely say that magnet schools are still affected by this infraction. 

Please keep in mind that I fully support many initiatives and ideas that incorporate cell phone use into the curriculum. The concept of BYOD (bring your own device) has a lot of merit to it so I try to use cell phones in positive ways: calculation tools, cameras, texting in answers to questions even. Yet, when I am trying to focus my students on an interactive activity or practicing a skill in the classroom, I should not have to redirect a student who is trying to text his/her friends.

I recognize that if students are engaged and focused they are less likely to take out the cell phone in the middle of class and start texting away or reading their twitter feed. That being said, sometimes I wish it weren't illegal in the US to use a cell phone jamming device for educational purposes.