• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Advertising
  • Write for Us
  • Job Board
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact
    • Consulting
    • Advertising
  • Shop
    • Books
    • Shirts

The Educators Room logo

  • Start Here
    • Impact Statements: Teacher Expertise
    • Newsletter
  • Browse Topics
    • Content Strategies
      • Literacy
      • Mathematics
      • Social Studies
      • Educational Technology
      • ELL & ESOL
      • Fine Arts
      • Special Education
      • Popular Topics
        • Teacher Self-Care
        • Instructional Coach Files
        • Common Core
        • The Traveling Teacher
        • The Unemployed Teacher
        • The New Teacher Chronicles
        • Book Review
        • Grade Levels
          • Elementary (K-5)
          • Middle (6-8)
          • Adult
          • New Teacher Bootcamp
          • Hot Button Topics
            • Menu Item
              • Principals' Corner
              • Charter Schools
              • Confessions of a Teacher
              • Interviews
              • The State of Education
              • Stellar Educator of the Week
            • Menu
              • How to Fix Education
              • Featured
              • Ask a Teacher
              • Teacher Branding
              • Current Events
  • Podcasts
  • Courses
    • Practicing Self-Care to Avoid Teacher Burnout- An 8 Week Course
    • Becoming An Educational Consultant
    • Teacher Branding 101:Teachers are The Experts
    • The Learning Academy
    • Books
    • Shirts
  • Education in Atlanta
  • Teacher Self-Care
  • The Coach's Academy
menu icon
go to homepage
subscribe
search icon
Homepage link
  • Advertising
  • Write for Us
  • Job Board
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact
    • Consulting
    • Advertising
  • Shop
    • Books
    • Shirts
×

January 18, 2017 Current Events in Education

10 Years Later: 10 Takeaways on the iPhone and Education

  • About the Author
  • Latest Posts

About Jake Miller

Mr. Jake Miller is the 2016 National History Day Pennsylvania Teacher of the Year, a 2017 NEA Global Fellow to China, and a former candidate for county-wide office. Miller has written more than 500 articles, most of which have appeared on The Educator's Room. He's the opening contributor to TER's book When the Fire Is Gone. Learn more about Jake at www.MrJakeMiller.com
  • The Student-Teaching Model Is Outdated: Here's How We Can Do Better - September 15, 2021
  • Visualize: How Seeing What's Coming Changed My Teaching - August 16, 2021
  • 10 Lessons About Teaching from My Youngest Son - June 24, 2021
  • Ending the Epithet “Try-Hard” Once and for All in Classrooms - June 18, 2021
  • From STEM, Let's Pivot to the BRANCHES of the Humanities - May 25, 2021
  • Would Education Collapse If Teachers Stopped Working for Free? - May 20, 2021
  • 10 Ways to Teach Like Ted Lasso: Part II - April 21, 2021
  • 8 Tips So Your Substitute Plans Don't Suck - April 14, 2021
  • 10 Ways to Teach Like Ted Lasso: Part I - March 12, 2021
  • The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teachers: Habit 3 - First Things First - February 26, 2021

Ten years ago this month, Steve Jobs walked out onto the world's stage and said "this is a day I've been looking forward to in 2.5 years" because of this "revolutionary product that absolutely changes everything." I'm talking about the iPhone. And boy, did it change everything.

Today, nearly 7 in 10 adults has a smart phone, a number that increases to 89% in the 19-39 age range. And for students aged 11 and up, 73% of these young minds have access to a smart phone. The smart phone has become so ubiquitous that 51% of college students have said "they can't imagine life without them." This omnipresence of the device has crashed the career (and marriage) of Anthony Weiner, one of the Democratic Party's rising stars, while providing a medium for President-Elect to communicate with the world (he has stated he "won't give up his Android" when he assumes office). But what has it done to schools?

The jury is still out, but one can argue the smartphone's impact in two ways:

For some, it has become a weighing anchor in education. Here are 5 examples:

  • It's no secret that attention-deficit disorders are rising at the same clip as smartphone usage. The question is their relativity to one another.
  • The intense addiction of the device has also been pointed out. For some teachers, as the Atlantic Magazine reports, it's like "giving students access to cigarettes and candy;" they don't know what to do with this power. I wonder that power when I look at my 15-month-old son, who still has yet to interact with a device (and won't until he's at least 2 - or probably much older - per the AMA's advice). I'm not yet ready to see his head slooped over the smart phone.
  • When a Ohio university created a study on smart phone usage, the used three test groups: those permitted to openly use their device, those only permitted to use the phone related to class, and those who were prohibited to use the phone at all, the vast gaps in retaining a lecture were astounding. It's no surprise those most engaged in the lecture (and disengaged from their phones) learned the most.

    The iPhone has become a weighing anchor in education Click To Tweet

  • This addiction is making students more depressed, anxious, and disconnected from their peers, family, and society. How else would "Slender Man" be able to take off as a "thing?" Yet, I hate to break it to my fellow educators - you're just as (and maybe more) addicted as the kids.
  • Lastly, the phone as a video recorder has become a fear for all teachers. Though there aren't many documented instances of students filming teachers, with the constant filming of police officers, the fear is there. Just YouTube search "horrible teacher" and, if you didn't have that fear before, now you probably will.

 

For others, the smart phone has revolutionized the classroom as a sail. Here are another 5 examples:

  • In a world filled of draining educational resources, the smart phone has become the go-to resource that students are already adept at using and can use anywhere. It jumps over language gaps - and instead through Google Translate - plugs them. The next time someone says "OK Google" or "Hey Siri" - you'll know exactly what I'm talking about.
  • The power of applications (yes, the formal term for apps) has unlocked a wealth of experiential learning. My students can now take a virtual field trip in Independence Hall, roam the moon, digitally dissect a frog, play educational math games, and more.
  • Online textbooks and media have made up-to-date and best-practice curriculum so easily attainable that the old encyclopedias that used to sit in our library not just outdated, but outrageous. To boot, digital textbooks are (up to 50%) cheaper and can be updated from year-to-year.

    the smart phone has revolutionized the classroom Click To Tweet

  • The ability to so easily video has made students into their own filmmakers, and the language of YouTube (which is very strongly their method for watching and consuming media - in that 91% of teens use YouTube once a week). We can not only teach them the content in the best way they learn, but provides students the capacity to create projects that are in their own language. Similarly, if a student misses class, devices like the Swivl or ideas like flipped classrooms create the ability to keep continually active students involved in the classroom community.
  • Social media has given educators the ability to work together to trade ideas. Now teachers who are pursuing common goals or have similar experiences can lean on one another. I've already hosted an #sschat on Twitter solely from my smart phone. In fact, I imagine most of our readers are probably reading this article on that device, too.

 

While the jury is still out on the role, impact, and usability on devices on student classroom learning, the truth of the matter is, smart phones are here to stay. NEA offers a few tidbits of advice on using the technology in the classroom, and there is a blog that I found to be pretty useful, but the truth is the smart phone has wielded tremendous power in the changing face of education in the time since Mr. Jobs debuted it 10 years ago. Where it goes from here will largely be thanks to - or in despite of - our leadership as educators.

In conclusion, what grade would you give the smartphone for changing the face of education? Has it been an A+ positive? A true failure? Somewhere in the middle? Let us know in the comments and on social media comments section.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email

Related posts:

One Future of K-12 Education: From the Factory to a Personalized Model ThatQuiz: A Great, Easy to Use Resource Don't Be Tooled by Your Technology ZoomA Teacher's Love-Hate-Love Relationship with Zoom
« Teacher Sacrifices vs Sacrificing Teachers
What My Students Have Taught Me About Politics: Communication »

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

The Educator's Room was launched in 2012 to amplify the voice of educators. To date, we have over 45+ writers from around the world and boast over twelve million page views. Through articles, events, and social media we will advocate for honest dialogue with teachers about how to improve public education. This mission is especially important when reporting on education in our community; therefore, we commit our readers to integrity, accuracy, and independence in education reporting. To join our mailing list, click here.

What we do

At The Educator's Room, we focus on amplifying and honoring the voice of educators as experts in education. To date, we have over 40 staff writers/teachers from around the world.

Popular Posts

  • 6 Reasons to Use Read-Alouds Daily
  • The Secret Ingredients of Lesson Planning
  • The Exhaustion of Black Educators on Another "Day After"
  • Behind the Mask

Featured On

Buy Our Books/Courses

How to Leave Your Job in Education

Practicing Self-Care to Avoid Teacher Burnout

Using Your Teacher Expertise to Become an Educational Consultant

Check out our books on teaching and learning!

The Learning Academy

Footer

↑ back to top

About

  • Privacy Policy
  • Disclaimer
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Accessibility Policy

Newsletter

  • Sign Up! for emails and updates

Contact

  • Contact
  • Services
  • Media Kit
  • FAQ

 

Copyright © 2021 The Educator's Room.