Dear TEACHER_NAME,

I think the best policy to implement would be policy two, not allowing students to have phones at all. If students were to be allowed cell phone usage during certain times in the day then they would be tempted to use them during class and then precious class time would be wasted on punishment. A phone ringing during class is a distraction not only to the person whose phone it is, but to all the pupils in the room. Also, cell phones could be used to cheat on assignments.

Lets say a teacher is in the middle of an important lecture and a phone goes off. She has to stop what she is doing and waste time figuring out whose phone rang and take time to punish that child. By this time the whole period is wasted because the teacher and the students have lost focus on the subject at hand all because of one cell phone. This wouldn't have happened if the student didn't have a cell phone. Then that pupil would still lose class time by sitting in a principals office or suspension.

Cheating is a shameful act that can hinder a student's educational career. Cell phones can be used to call or text message someone and ask the answer to class work or a state exam. A student taking the SAT could text message their friend and ask the answer to a question. This isn't showing what the student knows, it showing what their friend knows! The test could make the difference between a passing grade and a failing grade for that course. In many schools if you are caught cheating you could be suspended or expelled, and in colleges you are expelled, no questions asked.

I don't like to be distracted when I am working because I lose my train of thought and I'm not focused on what I am doing. This view is shared among many students, so if a cell phone goes off they will become distracted and, as I said, lose focus on their work. This could lower their grade for that assignment and cause their grade for the class to lower too.

I believe cell phones should not be allowed at school because they waste class time, can be used to cheat, and can distract other students. I