The Cellphones Mixtape

TJ: So, what is your screen time? 

Speaker: Ooh, I honestly get on social media on the screen time at work a lot–YouTube, Facebook, especially like the music on YouTube and stuff. I'm on there quite a bit. It's like a de-stressor for me. 

TJ: So, what is your screen time? Like, how much do you use on your phone? 

Speaker: All day, for real. Like, all day. 

TJ: And what do you spend most of your screen time on? 

Speaker: Instagram. Social media. 

TJ: And your name is? 

Speaker: Oh, my name’s [inaudible]. 

TJ: Okay, so how do you feel about technology today? 

Speaker: I don't know. As long as I get to get on Instagram.

Edwin: The first iPhone was introduced in 2007, one year before I was even born. And since then, phones and social media has changed our generation forever, from the way we do work to the way we make friends. 

In school, teachers use technology to prepare their lessons, to check if students are cheating, or to communicate with parents. Students use it for words or things they don't understand. To play games, to text, or to use the calculator app. 

No matter who you are, you're picking up your phone many times in a day. There's no doubt about it. When adults bring up technology, they mainly discuss the negative impacts. It seems that it's always us teens who get judged because we're always on it.

Is it the youth’s fault that the new technology is changing the world too fast? Or could it be the fact that we don't realize that we're using our phones in a harmful way?

Edwin: From the Boys & Girls Club of the Chattahoochee Valley, this is Mixtape to My Future, a teen-led show about navigating our lives in Columbus, Georgia. I'm your host, Edwin Brown. 

Jayla: I'm Jayla Shelley. 

Josiah: And I'm Josiah Porter. 

Karina: My name is Karina Miles. 

Devon: I’m Devon Cetoute. 

TJ: And I'm Trajae Bell.

Edwin: On today's episode, we're exploring how all teens use their phones in school and whether or not it causes problems that we need solutions for. We will hear a story about a friendship that was deeply impacted by social media. 

But first, we're interviewing an adult at the Boys & Girls Club who has faced challenges with student cell phone usage.

Jamil: I am Ms. Jamil. I currently serve as the Director of Teen Services for the Boys & Girls Club for Chattahoochee Valley. Um, and prior to this, I was an educator for a year and a half. I actually taught 10th grade English, and I also taught multicultural literature, and that is for seniors. 

Edwin: We want to talk to Ms. Jamil on why teachers are so fixated on restricting cell phone usage. We'll be talking about why it's important for teachers to get creative and how everyone can compromise and meet in the middle. 

Devon: So, what makes you as an educator dislike the use of phones if you do entirely disagree with the use? 

Jamil: Well, I definitely disagree with the use of cell phones in school simply because it is a very, very huge distraction. You are in the middle of doing a paper. Your friend texts you. You can't hold it on the inside. Now you gotta go see what that friend is talking about. And before you know it, you spent 20 minutes texting back and forth. That paper is still not done. or somebody had a fight and now that fight is being sent to your phone, it's just too many opportunities for you to go to something else.

Um, of course you have some students who are disciplined enough to be able to use the cell phone, but we know most of you all are not able to be disciplined and stay on one thing, have one track mind and do what it is that you need to do. 

Karina: Ms. Jamil, do you think that it would be helpful if we incorporated phones in the lesson since you know that's something that we’re, that we're into? Like maybe, like, have a game on our phone that has something to do with the lesson so it's like a balance between the two. 

Jamil: Okay, because when I was in the classroom, I took cell phones at the door, the student wouldn't have had an opportunity to be able to do that. 

Karina: So the intention was to teach self control?

Jamil: Actually, no. Didn't really even think about it like that. When I was in the classroom, um, I was pretty much proud of myself on them having an unplugged experience because, you know, I know that you all definitely would never experience the 90s because it's 2024. But back in the 90s, phones weren't necessarily a thing. And if they were, it was a pay phone. Or the way that people communicated was through pagers. 

So they actually had to interact with one another and that's one of the things that you all don't really do because if you go into a room with teens now, cell phone, iPad, all the things, off in your own corner versus, y'all let's do this, let's play a game, let's, let's talk, let's sit down and, you know, let's, let's do this.

So it's really hard, um, for you all to connect to one another, focus on what you need to focus on, ask the questions you need to ask and get, get the work done because that's what you're here for, especially in school.

Edwin: While Ms. Jamil thinks it's important to have an unplugged classroom experience, we wanted to hear from the students as well. 

Jayla: Do you feel like we should be allowed to use cell phones in our classroom? 

Speaker: Yes. 

Jayla: Why and why not? 

Speaker: Under certain circumstances, it might be necessary, like, if somebody's parent can't reach the school quick enough, because like, you never know when people's…The school will be on the phone, if somebody can't reach the school quick enough, they gotta reach their child immediately, then that would be a necessary reason. 

Josiah: So, do you feel like we should be allowed to use cell phones in a classroom? Why or why not?

Aster: I think it depends on the situation because some people have certain emergencies that might be embarrassing, and they might want to text or call their parent and not have the whole office know about it if, because usually when you have an emergency they'll send you down to the office to call them. Or your Chromebook dies and you need to do your work and you have the apps to do so. And yeah, things like that. 

Edwin: There are many reasons why we should have our phones in class. What if there was an emergency and I needed to contact my parents? What if my after school plans changed and I needed to update my mom on where to pick me up? What if I needed to quickly look up a definition? And if we're being honest, aren't we all addicted to our phones? 

Jayla: So how do like some of them react like this? Some of them like, man I'm not giving up this phone, I don't care what you gotta say. 

Jamil: At the beginning of the school year, first day of school, first week of school, but after you spend about 30 days with me and then I figure out how to make the assignments interactive and fun and on your level, you don't even think about the cell phone.

Of course, you're just gonna have like those kids, I love my phone ,I love my phone. I got to be on tik tok. I got to take a picture, I've got to take a selfie all of those things. But then you have some kids that just aren't as attached to their phone and if you actually manage to make a lesson plan that's around something that'll be interesting or that's eye-catching or something that's going to have them all in, that cell phone won't be thought about for 50 minutes.

Devon: That's another thing, the teachers that have been teaching for maybe 10, 15, 20 years, a lot of those teachers don't know how to come up with something other than what it is they've already developed as a lesson plan. And a lot of them don't come up with methods that are growing with modern time or whatnot to make sure that their lessons are still interactive or engaging for the students. 

Jamil: I think one of the things that always kind of kept my students on their toes. I always thought about, okay, if I was 15, 16, and I was still in high school, would I actually want to do this? And if the answer is a no, I wasn't going to do it. 

Devon: I don't want to make this sound bad, however, I think a lot of students also have a little bit more of a better interactive scope when it comes to engaging with a younger teacher because sometimes when you see a younger teacher, you feel like it's got to be more fun. 

Karina: Right. It's more easy to relate. 

Devon: Yeah. And sometimes again, some of the older teachers that have been teaching for 10 years, they, they revert back to the same things. And when it's fresh, they can catch you at those stages where you're trying to still figure out how to teach as well. So, both you are in the learning stages. So, I feel like that's another thing that kind of helps students when, when it comes to the teaching methods and stuff like that. 

Jamil: The thing about teaching was that although I'm getting older, um, my students aren't necessarily because I would have been teaching the same grade. So, as I'm getting older and they're staying the same ages, you kind of have to keep in mind the things that they're going through because the set of problems that I had is not the set of problems that y'all have. And so, as you continue to go into your career, whether you're at year one, year five, year ten, year fifteen, whatever it is, you still have to continue to stay with the times. Because the last thing you want to do, even though you might be 30, 40, 50, the lesson plans, they shouldn't be reflecting the 50 year old. It just, it shouldn't. Maybe you are 50 and you came up with it, but it shouldn't be reflecting the 50 year old because the 50 year old isn't the one that's learning, it’s the students in that classroom.

When you actually work with teenagers, they keep you young so you always want to make sure that you keep things young and fresh along with them. So you can't get complacent in the way things are because a teacher that was teaching in 1999, I'm pretty sure and I hope that they're not teaching the same way they were before. You just can't. 

Jayla: What are the cell phone policies in your school? 

Speaker: No cell phones out in class. Keep them in your locker. 

Speaker: No phones at all. 

Jayla: When are you allowed to use your cell phone? 

Aster: Um, we are not allowed to use them in the hallways, in class. Um, the only times you can use them are before school, at lunch, and after school.  

TJ: So, do you think that cell phone policies now, um, will start getting more stricter?

Jamil: I think that it will, simply because of the intent of teens today. Um, you know, when I think about my days, um, while I was teaching, a fight could happen, somebody record it, send it to the whole school. Whole school has it. Airdropping stuff that has no business being airdropped. Pictures of teachers that shouldn't be circulating. Pictures of homework that shouldn't be sent out. So, I mean, it probably… group chats talking about stuff that you don't have no business talking about. So, more than likely, it will. And I mean, that's just a few of the issues, tons of issues, that happen day to day in school.

Karina: Yes, but you also have to remember that we're free flowing people. So, like, no matter what rules that's put in place, if they want to do it, they will. So, even if it's not in your class, even if it's not even at school, they're gonna do it anyways. 

Jamil: You're right. You're right, but you also want to make sure that school is first, so when that kid who makes a 69 in your, in any class, nobody can say, well you didn't have the opportunity, because you had the opportunity because you decided to sit on your phone. And it happens. It really does. It happens all the time. Ms. Hardin, can I please, can I please? You sat in class just like that A student that I have, but you chose to do other things. 

Josiah: I feel like, like in schools and with the cell phones, I feel like they should allow it but at the same time, it's the kids responsibility for their grades and get turned they work in. So if they don't do that and be on the phone during class all day and they fail…

Karina: Right, like natural consequences. 

Devon: One thing that is always stated at Hardaway is everything follows based on what the previous year did. So, every couple of months we have a meeting for, um, statistics based on what people are getting suspended for the most and stuff like that. It's called PBIS, Positive Behavior Intervention System. And so if seniors got suspended for cell phone use, then based on that the statistic would show up and so they would continue to find reinforcements that would work and see if they can continue to putting stuff in place. So I do see that becoming a thing where they continue to kind of gauge what it is they're running into and try and find solutions. But no matter what, no matter where. There's always gonna be a workaround that someone tries to find or a loophole or something like that. Even I don't just stay off my phone all the time. People still go to the bathroom, make TikToks and do all kinds of loony stuff inside the bathroom or in the hallways and stuff. But that's because we found the loopholes so they just get away with it. There's never, um, there's never a band aid that completely covers the whole issue. 

Josiah: What are the sneakiest ways you've broken the rules and used your phone anyway? 

Aster: Last year, when we we really didn't have a geography teacher and there's just a whole bunch of substitutes. So when I was done with my work, I'll just pull out my phone and play video games. 

Jayla: So what are the sneaky ways you've broken the rules and used your phone? 

Speaker: Oh, I’d hide it behind my leg with my Chromebook, with my purse, with my bookbag, and I got a clear book bag. That's how you know I’m slick. 

Jamil: So would you all prefer not using it in, like, the academic classes, like English, Math, Science, Social Studies, but using it in the connections? 

Devon: That does make sense. 

TJ: Yes, or even lunch, too. There’s some schools who…

Devon: Most schools do allow it in lunch.

Jayla: Because there's, like, anti-social kids that don't, like, interact, so why can't they just be on their phone?

TJ: I was the same when I started my freshman year. Um, starting out high school, I was nervous. I didn't know. I thought high school was just gonna be very hardcore. 

I have a very strict principal so he said we couldn't use our phones during lunch. So I was just like, I don't know how I'm gonna get through this, especially at lunch. And then I'm very insecure about, like, eating in front of people. 

Josiah: Me too. 

TJ: I really didn't like that. That's one rule that needs to change at least. At least let us use our phone at lunch. But, some people like to fight at lunch. So I will understand why we can't have our phones, because some people want to record, and now it's all over the school.

Jamil: And before you know it, it's on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook. 

Karina: Well, I go to the same school as TJ. And I had, like, we're in the same grade, but I had a totally different mindset when going to high school. Because when I was in middle school, I was so bored of the same people every day, like, it was suffocating. So, once I was finna go to high school, I was really excited to meet new people and interact with people and stuff like that. But, um, everybody, they kinda already had their friend groups formulated from middle school. Everybody already know who they wanna talk to, who they wanna sit by. And so, like, every time I would try to talk to them, I would pretty much get rejected by people's friend groups. You know like, when you join a friend group and then they both give each other that look, it's like, oh no, I gotta go now. And so like, I pretty much just had no choice but to just stop talking to people because everybody just had their mind set on who they wanted to talk to. And then like, when I did talk to somebody, it was very surface level and like, not in depth so…

Jamil: And you just would have preferred to be on your phone once you got to that point of people rejecting and acting weird. 

For lunch, I definitely could see why y'all should definitely use your phone, but because of the fight. 

TJ: And if teenagers now have such a disgusting attitude…

Edwin: There's a lot that we don't agree on after talking with Ms. Jamil, but there was one thing that Ms. Jamil brought up that we all experienced in school. Information spreads like wildfire because everyone is recording everything, whether it's a lunch room fight or the answers to a pop quiz. And that's really affecting the relationships that we have with each other.

This next story comes from Jayla and it deals with just that. 

Jayla: It's about dating, cell phones and talking smack.

Edwin: It's a classic teen story. Two people have a crush on someone and the drama starts. But how did cell phones make this common problem this complicated? 

So here's what you need to know to follow the story. The main characters are two good friends. We're calling these characters. JK and EY, and the friend group is completed with LA and JJ and there's a teen heartthrob in the middle.

Jayla: Okay, so we're going to call the boy Boomers. JK and Boomers, they were friends, they were all cool. But Boomers was talking to EY, and JK secretly was trying to talk to Boomers. Boomers was thinking, Oh, he can just play both of them, yeah. But that's not how it works. 

So JJ, LA and EY was tooken out of JK's close friends on Instagram. So she posted a stop motion with Boomers with them kissing on social media and she hid the story but didn't take the people that knew LA, EY and JJ, and she thought nobody was going to say nothing. This was going on in the testing room, and the rumor got around because somebody had their device in the room, and LA found out, and LA take JJ, and JJ and LA were just like, oh wow, that's weird, so we're not going to talk to you no more. You're, you're fake. 

And so, when EY felt out, a whole bunch of drama started. They were on Instagram live talking about, hey, we gonna meet up at this spot because you gonna fight me because you was talking to Boomers. And when all this was going down, the girl, JK, was getting scared because of all the groups and everybody was ganging up on her. That wasn't okay. But at the end of the story, the school did get involved and they handled the situation before it got out of hands and parents and all of that had to get involved.

Devon: So overall, it's really displaying how it is that teenagers in this particular story decided that it was appropriate to use the internet or their phones or whatnot in a negative way. Um, and they decided that it was appropriate to go home and get on live and stuff like that and talk about each other or bash each other in and try and make up times for each other to fight, which I really don't see…I don't see why people do that because, one, it's on the internet. I've noticed that a lot of people screen record lives and stuff like that. So it still gets sent everywhere. 

Jayla: Yeah, cause it got sent to the school. The anonymous person sent it to the school. I had to get pulled in because of that, because I was on the live. But they just do that to make it seem like they're not, Oh, they're not scared of you. They’re big and bad so I don't care cause my mama not gonna, like, they like, my mama not gonna care, so either way it goes, you gonna fight me or what? 

Devon: That's another thing is that a lot of parents don't care. Um, I think that parents will, over time slowly acknowledge, some of the things they need to acknowledge when it comes to their, their child and what it is their child sees or kind of engages in. A lot of that stuff is on your phone when you send, um, different information and stuff like that to your friends over the phone, you never know what people are actually using it for. I think that another thing is that people kind of stab you in the back when it comes to the information that you state, because it may not necessarily be meant for everybody else because people hear things and they turn it into their own narrative. But…

Jayla: Believe rumors. 

Devon: Yeah, that's one of the biggest things.

Edwin: Ultimately, new technology is really complicated, and I think it's going to take time to adapt to healthy usage in school. But before we get there, all sides have to make compromises—educators, students, and parents. We have to be willing to understand each other and talk about it openly like we did with Ms. Jamil. And that way everyone can say that they're involved. And maybe that's the only way kids won't find loopholes to bend the rules. Maybe, but maybe not.

CREDITS

Thanks for listening. This is Mixtape to My Future, a production of the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Chattahoochee Valley. From the team here, our producer is Jamil Harden. Our production partner for this series is CitizenRacecar. Our producer and editor is Hajar Eldaas. Post production by Alex Brouwer, podcast education by Em Löwinger, publication and promotion by Candice Chantalou. Thanks to the whole team at the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Chattahoochee Valley for making this podcast possible.