I think a safe station for them to store their phones is a great solution. If it distracts your teaching and their learning, it has become an issue. I would have it placed in the front though in labeled pockets with their name or a number. They must put the device in facing the wall so they are not distracted by it lighting up.

Yes, your solution would work. I also think that there are ways you can incorporate their devices into your curriculum. It can be as simple as asking polling questions, where they can vote with their device. You can do a "sweep" to check they are doing what is asked on their devices by simply asking them to turn the device in your direction so that you can see their screen.

I think it is a great idea to have students to put their phones in a station during class. You would have to make sure that no one steals the phones if they are in the back of the room. You would not want to be responsible for a stolen phone.

I would not enforce a class wide policy for a cellphone station where phones must be deposited at the beginning of the class. This is punishing students who may not be causing the problem in the first place and setting up a risk for thievery. Instead, I would set up a cell phone station for the naughty kids who use their phones during inappropriate times. Those who pull out their phones get it taken away and placed in the cell phone station. They then miss their opportunity to use the phone later when others are allowed. This rule should be made clear so that there are no hurt feelings when the phone is taken.

Cell phones are a hard issue these days in schools. Something that i do in my 12th grade English class is that i incorporate cell phones into my lesson and circulate the room to ensure that the phones are being used for academic use only. At the beginning of class i ask for a time keeper and signal person. They know that when 30 minutes of academic instruction is up they get 5 minutes of free cell phone use then 25 minutes of academic instruction time. If the students use their phone for anything other than academic use they are required to turn their cell phone in during the 5 minutes of free time. This has worked very well and i don't have an issue with cell phones in my class.

I think that is a great idea! It allows for students to not use their phone during class. They wouldn't even have the phone on them. This is fantastic!

I think your solution is excellent! This will make sure that your students are focusing on their classwork instead of worrying about answering their cell phone.

Depending on the subject you teach, you could have them turn in their cell phone at the beginning of class in exchange for a classroom material (ex. calculator in a math class; novel in an English class). When they enter the room, they would turn in their cell phone, receive a calculator to use during class, and then at the end of class they do not get their phone back until they turn the calculator back in. This helps prevent students from using their phone during class and prevents your calculators (or other items) from going missing!

I think that is a great idea. Having a specific place for that keeps the device out of the way for learning time.

From my experience, collecting all phones is a bad idea. First of all, it does punish kids who are not causing a problem or not allowing their phones to distract them. Second, this poses a major liability issue and many schools are starting to forbid the collection of phones. My school forbids teachers from doing it and the district discourages it in general. If a phone goes missing, the parents will blame the teacher and will want either the teacher or school to replace the missing phone. Having a centralized location for phone storage also invites thievery. In my district, there is a strict penalty for theft of items worth over $200, plus the school would have to involve the authorities. I have had it happen to me where I collected a phone from a kid who was using it to cheat, then it was stolen while I turned my head to answer a question (literally less than 10 seconds). The parents demanded I replace their son's brand new $800 iPhone. Thankfully I did not have to, but the school decided to eat the cost of the new phone to appease the parents. The moral of the story is that there are many ways to ensure that kids stay off their phones. The first and most important thing is student engagement. Students who are kept busy, interested in the course, and engaged will not have time to pull out their phones. Second, students need to know up front (the first day of school) what your policy is and they need to know you will follow through with a consequence for breaking your rule. I give a warning, then on the second offense, I call home. After doing that once or twice, the word spreads among the students. That is how I have handled phones and they have not been a problem. All I can say is that if you choose to collect phones, be extremely cautious!

I feel that this can be a good and bad policy. I feel that the constant use of their devices and technology is not acceptable as children need verbal and social interaction still. But i also feel setting up a station where the students have to place their phones is a good idea as long as it is secure and no one can touch or mess with anothers device.

I think that would be a great idea, because it allows your classroom to be a distraction free environment. If your classroom arrangement involves cluster seating or table groups, another idea would be putting bins on the tables. This is good for when they are able to use their devices when you tell them to, and eliminates a long line to the bin in the back.

I agree with your idea, putting the phone in the back wall. To tell you the truth I don't agree that the students are using phones in the school and in classroom.This will cause a 100% distraction. Why don't your school find a funding to buy iPads for the whole school that they can use during school days.

Yes, I would have students put their phones into a box until told to use it.

I would have the students place their cell phones at the top of their desk. Have a class rule in place that the students can't touch their phones until permitted.