Embrace Mobile Devices

Many school districts do not have updated policies to handle the plethora of mobile devices in the hands of high school students. Students are using these devices throughout their day - and school employees are not embracing them. Instead, there is a hostile reaction with negative policies dictating teachers should take the devices from the students (only to be returned to a parent).

What would happen if students were able to use these devices in the classroom?

My students were working on a short chemistry worksheet and they were stuck on a question. Several students took out their phones and typed the phrase into Google's search site. They wrote down the answer and quickly spread the answer to others in the class (texting).

Now this means teachers need to work harder to not just copy a worksheet from the internet. Instead, teachers need to come up with unique questions.

A second "negative" is the challenge for writing and administering tests. Students are quick to use their phones to take a picture of a paper based test or quiz and text it to their friends. This is why computer administered tests are more difficult for students to crack.