By JUSTIN KANE
A simple text message sent consisting of characters, symbols and numbers gets teachers around the country in trouble each year. Texting students is a controversy that surrounds schools in regards to coaches, band directors and other extracurricular leaders who are also teachers at their schools. This is an issue, though, that gets completely blown out of proportion.
In 2008, Lamar County school officials in Mississippi approved a policy that forbade teachers and students from having any text messaging or social-networking friendships. So with this policy in place, coaches who are teachers cannot notify their players of a change in practice or game time via text or Facebook message. This inconvenience can cause havoc to kids and families whose days are ruined because they miss a practice.
School teachers who are also coaches should be able to communicate with their players or students without any repercussions. There is no harm to someone who receives a message from a coach regarding something sports-related. In Florida, it rains almost every day, resulting in cancellations of sporting events. Kids hardly ever listen to the announcements at the start of seventh period as they are eager to leave school and get home. A text message could ensure players know the event is canceled so they don’t have to waste time or gas getting to the event.
Teenagers are forgetful. Sometimes athletes do not wear the right jersey or same color pants so a little reminder before each game of what uniform to bring is necessary. Teacher-student texting is essential to everyone who is a student athlete to avoid confusion and chaos in the locker room and on the field.
Another benefit of a teacher-student texting relationship is the ability for teachers to remind students about homework or upcoming tests. At the end of the day, a teacher could send out a reminder about homework assignments because, again, everyone knows how forgetful teenagers are. Also, if a teacher makes a mistake and says the wrong assignment during class, a text can correct the mistake and provide students with the correct assignment.
Furthermore, most kids don’t even know what e-mail is anymore; they communicate via texting. It is the only way to communicate with teenagers nowadays. This would ensure more kids get their homework done because they are being reminded on a daily basis of what it is and ultimately causing improvement in test scores. Often students don’t know about on-campus activities because they are not promoted well enough. If schools were to send out mass messages to students, schools could raise more money from event attendance. If students received a text regarding on-campus activities, attendance to the event would surely rise because more students would be aware of the activity, thus increasing the school’s revenue.
Texting is a quick and easy way to send information and, it is the
most efficient way to spread information in today’s generation of kids. They are constatly on their phones, even when they are told not to be.
Teenagers are always going to be tech-savvy, so why not embrace it? There is no harm for a teacher, coach, band director or any older figure to text
a student regarding informational messages and alerts. The connection provides convenient access to necessary information, which is vital in a world as chaotic as our own.