I got my phone taken away in high school once because my dad called me during the lunch hour to ask me for a number on an insurance card that was in my wallet. I was sitting outside eating, answered the call, read him the number, and hung up. About thirty seconds later, a teacher came outside, took my phone away, and gave me a detention.
I wasn't disrupting class or distracting myself at all. This was on a dumb phone, taking a call from a parent. I argued against the detention and was told that my school had a "zero tolerance" policy for cell phone use under any circumstances, just like weapons.
The US completely gave up on the idea of actually stopping school shootings, so parents now only feel comfortable if they can contact their children 24/7.
Yeah I dunno if I buy that explanation, for reasons given in both of the sibling comments. I think it's more likely that students are dopamine-addicted to their phones and don't know how to exercise the necessary self control, and parents and teachers are unwilling or unable to do it for them.
It makes DARE from the 90s feel even more surreal than it already did when I lived through it as a student. Kids, don't do drugs, but it is okay to become dependent on technology.
I wasn't disrupting class or distracting myself at all. This was on a dumb phone, taking a call from a parent. I argued against the detention and was told that my school had a "zero tolerance" policy for cell phone use under any circumstances, just like weapons.
What changed?