Dear Principal:

Recently you have stated that you are considering two policies when it comes to cell phones in our school. You believe that either us students can bring our cell phones to school and use them during our lunch and other free periods, as long as they are turned off during class time, or we are simply not allowed to have them at all. I believe that we should be allowed to bring our cell phones to school and use them during our lunch periods and free periods, for these three reasons.

First off, you have to consider who this rule affects. We are teenagers. Teenagers love their technology and their cell phones. I saw a comic once that said, "Teenagers: the only species of animal on Earth with a cell phone directly wired to their nervous system." We will be happier if we get to have use of our cell phones. If we are happier, this could lead to better grades, too. You may be worried about us using them during class, but if you had us keep them in our lockers until our free period, you wouldn't have to worry.

Next, we could call our parents much easier. I have to call my mom all the time and tell her that track practice has been extended another hour, or that she has to come pick me up because play rehearsal is canceled. I don't call her just for my extra-curricular activities, but also to ask her if she could bring in the lunch I forget occasionally. If cell phones were allowed in school, it would just make our whole parent-child communication easier.

Lastly, it would make it easier to talk with our friends. If I can't find my friend during lunch, I can just shoot off a quick text to her and ask her where she is instead of wandering the school, looking for her. Or, if she wants to tell me a secret about the boy she finds cute, she could just text it to me instead of whispering it and having everyone around us go, "What? What are you telling her? Tell me!" As well, one of my best friends moved a year ago and now lives in Orange County, California. Its hard to find times to talk, because when I'm getting up she's asleep, when I'm out of school she's in, and when I'm done with dinner she is still in her after school activities. But if I could text her during my lunch period, it would be much easier to stay in touch with her.

Therefore, For these three reasons- us students wanting to use our phones, communicating with our parents, and talking with our friends- I hope you can see what the benefits are of letting us use our cell phones in school during our lunch and free periods. Can you see that there would be no real benefits of taking away our cell phones? It will not help us.

Sincerely,

A chagrined 8th grader