texting in class

[AGDee]

My soon to be former coworker does that too, all day long. So, as I'm trying to show her how to do something or explain something to her, she's messing with her blackberry. MAKES ME INSANE and my boss called her out on it during her eval. It didn't change though. Then she doesn't remember what I showed her and screws it up when she has to do it on her own. I'm so glad she's leaving in two months.

[RaggedyAnn]

I have one professor that saw someone take out their phone during a test. She walked right up to them and told him to pack up. He failed the exam. He said he was just checking the time and she said no exceptions. I told you not to take out your phone. Another professor kicked a girl out of class permanently for texting. She failed the course. The prof (who I was talking with in a more casual setting) said she went to the dean to make sure this girl can't appeal.

I find the whole thing rude. If you can't bother to be there to pay attention, why be there? If your body is there, but not your mind, shouldn't the professor be allowed to mark you absent? That's why they have "participation" points. We actually had this discussion in one of my classes on Wednesday about cell phone etiquette. I guess the prof got sick of the texting, so she worked it into our ethics lecture.

I also find it rude to be at a register or taking up someone else's time with cell phone talking. I will never forget the time I was asking for help at Babies R Us and my phone started ringing. The saleswoman asked if I was going to answer it. She was shocked that I was curtious enough not to answer it while she was helping me.

There is an off button for a reason.

[Hopeful_Bubbles]

Speaking from the TA perspective, I think some kinds of participation points (in big classes we use clickers- ugh) just encourage people who probably wouldn't come to class and distract others to come. They use their clicker and spend the rest of class texting, answering calls (I've seen this happen on more than one occasion), surfing the net, chatting with friends (most annoying of all), reading the paper so high that it completely obscures their face, and sleeping. As a student I find it distracting, and as a TA and lab instructor I find it disrespectful, especially if the instructor has a policy about keeping cell phones and pda's and whatnot away during class. I was continually surprised at the way I got literally chewed out, argued with, and ignored by the students I asked politely to put their cell phones away or get off the internet when it was a class policy discussed on the first day.

[SydneyK]

All of my current classes have fewer than 50 students, so it isn't difficult for me to keep an eye on all of them. I'm pretty clear at the beginning of each semester that I'm not to see a cell phone unless there's an emergency (I also specify that I'm to be made aware of any such emergencies prior to class starting).

One of the benefits of small classes is that we all get to know each other fairly well. Since many of my classes revolve around sharing thoughts/feelings about particular subjects (I teach Logic, Ethics and Metaphysics), conversations can occasionally get very personal. I'm fairly sure that students who would ordinarily text in class probably don't because they don't want to disappoint me (or be embarrassed if/when I call them out). They may not feel this way in classes where there is no personal investment (like Geography or Econ, for instance).

During tests, students are allowed to bring only pens/pencils and bluebooks, so texting during tests isn't a problem for me, either.

Cell phones weren't very prevalent when I was a TA, so I didn't have to worry about being on cell-phone-duty during large lectures. That would've sucked - my sympathies to those who have to deal with that now.

[sjsoffer]

I've been known to text in class, such as in my giant lecture class on Ethology. He'd put all of the notes up on the first day, for the whole semester, and tests came straight from there and the book. It was a 3 hour night class, and I only went to see the relevant movies and to talk to the professor. I texted a lot in there, the teacher knew, and used me as an example of turning in a perfect research project.
In another class this semester, there are maybe ten of us students in the class. The teacher knows I text, but I'm also one of the most involved students in class discussions, and talk to her before and after class, so she doesn't mind. I also multitask on my laptop, such as now. I sit in the very back, corner closest to the door in all classes. (Health problems mean I need to leave often, and it's less distracting.)
However, time to leave greekchat to take notes

[Thetagirl218]

Originally Posted by SydneyK

All of my current classes have fewer than 50 students, so it isn't difficult for me to keep an eye on all of them. I'm pretty clear at the beginning of each semester that I'm not to see a cell phone unless there's an emergency (I also specify that I'm to be made aware of any such emergencies prior to class starting).

When I graduated from high school I had a year left for my AA so I got it at the local community college/ 4 year college before I transferred to my university. All my class at the local 4 year school were always less than 40 students, and I always had less than 50 (Sometimes only 20 people) in my upper level classes at the university.

Besides the fact that my professors all had the same policy as above, I would feel guilty if I was texting in their classes!