Now that’s a mouth that’s made for a cell phone.Photo: Getty Images
Since this Friday is apparently “Kids Gone Krazy” day, we thought we’d update you on how serious things are getting in the New York City Public School cell-phone battle. After vetoing a bill that attempted to spell out children’s right to carry a phone to and from school (for safety reasons), Mayor Bloomberg was easily overridden by City Council. The bill will pass, but still leaves unanswered the question as to how students are supposed to take phones to school, but not actually have them while there (where they are banned). “Most schools have a ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ policy” about phones, said teachers’-union honcho Randi Weingarten in a radio interview to be aired this weekend. [Ed. note: Wait, what? Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell? Oh, no, homo don’t play that!] Weingarten is torn. She wants to help kids be safe while traveling, but admits that in some schools phones are so disruptive that it’s becoming a serious impediment to learning. And we’re betting it’s only going to get worse. Phones, even when kids aren’t talking on them, are distracting. Texting, playing games, and conducting business is easy to do under a table while appearing to pay attention. Adults do it all the time, in meetings. You could even write a whole blog while in boring meetings with your bosses. We hear.
Weingarten Reveals Truth about Cell Phones [Daily Politics/NYDN]
