EDITORIAL — Cellphone ban

To improve the municipality's academic performance and encourage students to focus on reading, studying, and face-to-face interaction, Dumanjug Mayor Guntrano “Gungun” Gica said they are enforcing a "total ban" on cellular phones in all public schools starting June 29.

"If a student brings a phone, it will be confiscated and only returned at the end of the school year. If you do not wish to follow this policy, you have the option to transfer your children to another municipality," Mayor Gica said in a report in this newspaper.

It cannot be denied that some students, especially those who are still young and impressionable, have become too attached to their cellphones. Too much cellphone time can distract them from their lessons, discourage study time, and even negatively impact socialization with their peers.

Yes, limiting how much time they spend on their cellphones, especially when they are in school, is a good idea.

However, it also cannot be denied that the cellphone has become a very important tool, and the fastest way a student can reach his or her parents in any emergency situation and vice-versa.

And with the current crises the worlds is dealing with today --the war in the Middle East, extreme weather, climate change, not to mention this rash of violent incident happening in schools around the country-- emergencies can happen at any time.

Such emergencies don’t even have to be that big. An urgent medical situation within the family can qualify as such. Needless to say, a cellphone seized can mean an important message missed.

There are ways to prevent students from using their cellphones when they’re not supposed to be using them, without necessarily taking away the usefulness of the tool.

For instance, some schools require students to surrender their cellphones during class hours as a means to discourage their use during class. The students get these back during lunch break to check for any messages from their parents. Once classes resume in the afternoon, the cellphones are surrendered again, and returned to students at the end of the day.

We also think little can stop students whose cellphones have been seized and won’t be given back until the end of the school year from getting another cellphone.