Schools in Hillsborough County, Tampa, Fla. are to consider using smart phones in class room settings to help with day to day assignments. Marlene Sokol of the Tampa Times reports the question was raised by Board Chairwoman April Griffin earlier this year and was talked about at a Hillsborough County Board meeting at the beginning of December.
As with many counties, schools are having a hard time with encouraging students to participate and smart phones can start to play an increasing role in helping students learn. Sokol writes according to Griffin phones in class could be a beneficial tool for assisting with assignments or answering questions.
Allowing smart phones in a high school class room environment could raise some issues of attention if not properly supervised. There could be some positive outcomes for them as well. Allowing students to use phones to access the schools networks could help the student’s research while in class at a faster rate than needing to go home read the material and return the following day with the answers.
A smart phone in class rooms have been around for a couple of years in different places and seem to be a growing trend in the Tampa Bay area. Pasco Count’s Wiregrass Ranch High School has been trending that way since 2009.
The 2013 year could see even more schools adopt a cautious approach to allowing smart phones in school with the hopes of engaging students more in discussions.
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