This morning I walked into middle school as part of Parent Visitation day. The school was buzzing with the every day hustle and bustle of kids and classes. Memories of my own middle school days quickly came back to me. So much was the same 25 years later and yet so much was different.
Math class was group activities and worksheets. Boring, rote, "busy work" worksheets. Kids working with partners, kids working alone, kids trying to stay focused, and kids totally distracted. Enrichment class was reading aloud a novel and following the book with the movie. The current book interested some and others could have cared or less. Where the book couldn't hold the attention of some, those kids were able to absorb the story line through the movie. Gym class was a battle of the cliques as kids were able to pick a sports station to participate in. The dominant children manned their stations and the others could follow at will. French class was a mix of students going through the required motions, students not even bothering to put forth the effort, and students so completely lost they may not have known they were even in French class.
As I mentioned, so much was the same in middle school 25 years later. Students, classes, bells, intercom, cafeteria, books, lockers, hallways, worksheets, diverse learning, homework, wide range of attention spans, and teachers carrying the education torch to the next generation.
But what blew my mind was the middle school cell phone craze. I have been informed of this epidemic many times by my children. And often I have found it would be helpful for my children to have their own cell phone; convenient, but never necessary. We've remained steadfast in our resolve against entering "the childhood cell phone society" and I am proud to say each of my children have been very respectful of our decision. (even if a cell phone is on their Christmas wish list for the third year in a row)
Today, I was able to see first hand how influential the cell phone has become in our middle school. More students have a cell phone than those who do not. I was so tempted to take a poll in each classroom. I probably would have been further shocked by the number of students (besides my own) without a cell phone.
I am confident in my brief visit this morning, I was not able to witness the variety of benefits in having your own cell phone. Students can access Google, calculator, QR Reader, dictionary, and many other tools at their disposal. I certainly do not want to come across as "anti-technology" or step on any toes. Parenting is a tough gig; one where I fall and have to get back up many times! But today, 25 years after my own middle school journey, there was a distracted atmosphere I can only explain by the "iphone influence".
In each class I visited, cell phones were "accidentally" chiming, dinging, whistling, buzzing, vibrating, and causing an underlying distraction for students and teachers. Class just seemed like something to do when cell phones weren't an option or couldn't be easily hidden. If there was a lull in classroom activity, cell phones came to the rescue. When the bell rang, cell phones were the first thing to be checked. If a student needed to step out of class, the cell phone was immediately slipped into their pocket first. During gym class, my purse became "safe keeping" for many cell phones so that students could actually participate in gym class without damaging their phones.
The teachers barely blinked at all these cell phone interruptions. Occasionally a stern look or raised eyebrow was given signaling the cell phone infraction, but class continued as normal. Normal for this generation. Distracted with a white noise of technology. Students and teachers struggling to focus on learning. When learning didn't capture their attention, students had their cell phone as entertainment back up.
And I can only surmise the amount of drama and relationship strife that goes on during school hours via this cell phone craze. Bullying, peer pressure, fashion crises, cheating (relational and academic), fitting in, approval, criticism, he-said-she-said, texting wars, the list goes on. Proverbs 18:21 tells us that words have the power of life or death. The cell phone holds the same potential. The "iphone influence" is just as powerful, and is also capable of instant and widespread devastation with the single click of a "send".
So much life happens at the fingertips of students in middle school, and 25 years later, it seems that this is just how middle school rolls.
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