Dear principal,

I socialize through my cell phone. Most students do. We text or call people in case of emergencies, if a friend is sick we text them to tell them what homework they missed, and we can communicate without disturbing the people around us. I think we should be allowed cell phone usage in our free time and lunch periods because it can help the students that are sick, and we can check out homework against other students.

Did you know that 45% of students that are sick and out of school have trouble catching up? If we have contact to them during the school day, we can help that number go down. For example, my friend STUDENT_NAME texts me on the bus, "I'm sick, can you tell me what I missed in all of my classes?" If I can't tell her between every class I might for get something. Being able to call or text between classes would let us help sick students. Then teacher won't have to take time out of class to re-teach yesterday's lesson to the students that were absent. It would be a service to us the students, and the teachers.

Most friends of students have might have moved away. How do we communicate? We call or text them whatever chance we get so we don't lose their friendship. Don't we go to school to improve social skills as well as learn all we need to be successful? While keeping in touch we can learn things about where they are now living and have more knowledge. I like to learn about unknown places, don't you?

Did you hear about the student that was stuck at school after the whole building burned to the ground? Their school didn't permit cell phone usage so she didn't bring her phone to school. If there is an emergency at our school, shouldn't we be able to contact our parents right away? If there is a real emergency, or if we forget our homework, we need a way to contact parents through our cell phones to help us.

Most students that miss school get behind in their work. Then they might not ever catch up. If we are allowed cell phone usage in free periods and lunch, we will not be tempted to use them during class. We use our phones to stay in touch with friends that have moved, for emergencies, and to help friends stay on track with their school work. If you want a school where everyone is on the same page, permit cell phone usage in free periods and lunch.

Sincerely,

A concerned student