mobiles phones in schools timely story.
Well same day after I posted my views of Graham Attwells blog entry something caught my eye on local news site
Full Artcile Can Be Read Here
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DAD HORRIFIED BY PLAYGROUND PORN BY LYNDSAY EMMETT
10:30 - 05 December 2005 Schoolchildren are using mobile phones to swap porn in the playground, the Leicester Mercury can reveal.
Education bosses and children’s charities say they are aware of the problem and have called for action to tackle it.
Pupils are sending the explicit clips, which are downloaded from the internet, via new bluetooth technology, which is free to use and available on most new phones.
Concerned dad Tony Wright was horrified when he found pornographic films on his 13-year-old son’s handset.
Mr Wright, 34, from New Parks, whose children attend New College, said: “They are able to swap this stuff as easily as they can pass sweets around at playtime.
“I was disgusted when I saw what was on my son’s phone. There were two or three films. One of them was five minutes long and it was hardcore. I couldn’t believe it.
“I confronted my son and he said all the kids are doing it at school with this bluetooth.
“I took the phone off my son and told him he won’t get another one with bluetooth. I think parents need to know this is happening.
“If you have to be 16 to have sex or smoke, and 18 to watch one of these films, there should be a restriction on who can use these phones because they can get access to this kind of material.”
David Kershaw, executive principal of New College, will discuss the issue with parents at a meeting on Tuesday.
He said a teacher had already confiscated one phone after finding pornographic material on it.
“We will confiscate any handset we find with this material and hand it over to parents,” he said. “As a school we have a duty to educate our students about how they should have healthy relationships. They should be about sensitivity and caring, not exploitation.”
Last year, the Mercury launched its Bin the Cyberfilth campaign to raise awareness of the risks children face when using the internet and mobile phones - and how to avoid them.
John Carr, new technology advisor for children’s charity NCH, which backed our campaign, said bluetooth is perfect for children to swap information because it is free.
He said: “The only way to stop this is to make sure your child’s phone does not have bluetooth or if they do, they have it switched off which is hard to enforce.
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Full Artcile Can Be Read Here
Well last time I checked you can delete content from mobile phone if this child was say offended by content he should of deleted, oh that’s right it was not the child it was parent.
While I agree mobile phone companies have to do lot more ot protect children using mobile phones does this mean child and parent are blameless of course not child kept content on phone knowing I suspect that parent would disapprove and then parents of this child should be talking to child about why this not right etc etc instead of trying to get his 5 minutes in the spotlight.
Could schools do anything anyway schools have no legal right at moment to go into someone else’s property unless there is real clear and present danger and then you would be calling police in.
Also most mobile phones now have a setting where you are not broadcasting to world and also have to accept the imcoming message all the child has to do even if broadcast has been turned on is to deny the message.
That is why schools ban mobile phones unless mobile phone companies give us the technology to help us then mobile phones are going to be banned.
I do love the sensational headline out paper usually reserved for likes of the Sun.
Filed under: Education, News, Thoughts, mobile phones, schools, technology