Students consider cell phone etiquette

By Carrie Pagley

Published: April 9, 2001

There you are. In class. Listening intently to your teacher. And ... Your cell phone rings. Now, you're not really supposed to have it in school anyway, but you do. And what do you do now that you have disrupted class?

It could be someone important.

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"People just need to know when it's appropriate to use them. I think if you are responsible enough to have one, you should be responsible enough to use them," said Kayla Hopkins, a sophomore at Putnam City North High School.

Hopkins, 15, recalls one of her classmates once receiving a call, leaving the classroom and saying, "It's important. I have to take it."

The teacher was not happy and the student was reprimanded.

Cellular and digital phones, pagers and other electronic devices are prohibited in schools by state law. The law asks districts to create policies prohibiting students from having wireless communications devices in school.

For example, the Edmond School District has a policy that states a "students may not possess a wireless communication device while the student is on school premises or while the student is in transit to or from school on a school vehicle or while the student is attending any function sponsored or authorized by the student's school."

Troyvonne Hamilton, 18, said she knows cell phones aren't allowed in school. But if they're turned off and no one knows you have it, it's OK, she said.

"It's prohibited, but a lot of us do anyway," said the Northeast Academy for Health Sciences and Engineering senior.

Hamilton said it depends on the situation if you should answer a call in the middle of something.

If you're in a meeting or other quiet place, you should "answer it and let them know you're in a meeting," she said. "If it's in church, don't take the call."

In a movie? Walk out and take the call, "don't sit there and talk during the movie," she said.

So answering an important call from your friend about hitting the mall might not be acceptable during class, but when is it OK to take the call?

Students from metro area school districts weighed in on the question of cell phone etiquette. This generation that has grown up not knowing a time when electronic devices weren't everywhere has a sense of what is acceptable and what's not.

Reva Jefferson, 16, has a cell phone, but she doesn't usually have it with her.

The John Marshall High School sophomore draws the line for cell phone use at entertainment.

"In a movie no. People tell you to be quiet when you're laughing at a movie, so if it's your cell phone, they'll definitely tell you shhhh," she said.

Jefferson said she also thinks it's OK for adults to use their cell phones when they're driving, but isn't so sure about teens.

"We have a lot of stuff that distracts us," she said. "If it rings, yes, but don't be on it that long."

Nick Wolf, 17, said he sometimes uses his cell phone while driving, but usually keeps his talking to a minimum.

"For me, it's a whole lot harder because my Jeep is a standard," he said.

The Bishop McGuiness senior said he uses his cell phone at the mall, takes it with him to raves and whenever he needs it. But it's not OK to use it at school ... or in a meeting, he said.

One of the times excessive cell phone use annoys Hopkins is at a restaurant, she said.

Because people usually talk loudly on cell phones, sometimes the disruption makes it so you can't hear your own conversation, she said.

"That's really annoying," she said. "People should be a little more considerate."

Kourtney Young, 15, doesn't have a cell phone yet. But the Northwest Classen freshman still has ideas on when and where cell phones should be used.

"One time we had a band performance and a lot of phones rang," Young said. "I don't think it should be on in the first place. If it is, they should turn it off, or leave the room when it rings."

Young does plan to get a cell phone when she turns 16.

She says the phone will be for emergencies, but once she has it, she may use it for other things.

"I'm sure I will."