More use of phones (again) ...

There was a time when the technology was not advanced enough; that the notion of the phone being an intrusive device in the classroom suited my educational ethos. As well as the indiscipline that surrounded this.

Holding the record for confiscation (a whole group during a mass-recording of a fight); I do understand the need for control. But having seen the change in tech over the last five years and the economic constraints many academic colleagues operate under. My standpoint has moved from 'no phones' towards ... why aren't you using them under a well managed culture of discipline and mutual agreement?

Recently I had to conduct a centre visit. It was a pleasure to discover that we had a centre that offered wifi to their student community of 2000+ and allowed all of them to use appropriately their mobile phones for learning.

This is somewhere that had recently acquired an ofsted grade two and from my perspective maintained quite a sensible culture towards mobile based learning.


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