Thursday, 07 August 2008
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Can Your Child Live Without a Cell Phone?
by babyfever25We live in a world where, instead of studying, kids spend countless hours chatting on AIM or "Facebook or MySpace stalking." Besides that, there is another addiction that is increasing each year: cell phone use.
Texting has become more popular and wireless phone bills are hundreds of dollars from the million calls/messages kids make throughout the day.I remember getting my first cell phone when I was a freshman in high school. I always wanted one because that was when Nextel became popular and my peers were jumping at any chance to get one. When I got my cell phone, though, my parents restricted me... A LOT. I wasn't even allowed to use it unless I was in a life and death situation, but as the years went on, more and more kids had cell phones so the whole restricting phase stopped. Freshman year of high school isn't that early to own a cell phone, but now kids are in fifth grade and their hands are glued to their Blackberrys! I don't know about you but having a cell phone at ten years old (and believe me, it's getting younger) seems out of control. To be honest with you, it sort of creeps me out seeing their tiny fingers spasmodically text every twenty seconds.
With that said, the fact that an increased risk for brain tumors may be linked to cell phone use is beyond scary. Although there is no solid proof, should we forget the possibility? I think it's important to teach children that there is a world beyond texting and cell phones in general. They should find alternative ways of communication or at least understand that cell phones shouldn't be the number one thing on their Christmas or Birthday list, just because the pressures of society are increasing along with the evolution of technology.
What age did/would you let your child(ren) get a cell phone? Would the possibility of a health risk affect your decision?
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Comments (62)
well my kids are homeschooled so they dont need a phone to contact me from school and they're allowed to use mine when they want but they rarely do.yeah i could see highschool....... it just doesnt need to be so young!!!
I don't think I'll let the kids have cell phones until they can pay for it themselves (like through a part time job). I haven't thought too much on the health risks...as studies and stats seem to change like most people's underwear. I myself was very late to hop on the cell phone wagon (like, the middle of last year!) and while I appreciate the conveniences, a land line works just fine for us too. I guess I am just old. At least my phone isn't rotary like my grandmother's LOL!
I'm a teenager now (15) and I remember when I got my first cellphone. It was in 6th grade. I honestly think that's too young, but back then, I didn't really use it much. My parents got it for me when our ski club bus got into an accident, and I wasn't able to reach them. That phone lasted me a good three years before I got a new one. I'm on my second now, and I don't plan on replacing it anytime soon.
My younger brother, however, is going into 7th grade. He is on his 4th phone. I think that's insane. Yes, they broke and had to be replaced, which is why he has so many, but really? He's addicted to texting and talking on the phone more than I am!
Then I go somewhere and I even see little 6 or 7 year olds with cellphones! They're texting away like it's normal! I agree with what you said, it does creep me out.
I think the right time to give a kid a cellphone is when they really need it. The age that they start going out by themselves with friends and stuff, that's when.
A health risk would ALWAYS effect my deciscion about my kids.
I got my first cell phone when I was 16, but only at that young bc I was in college 16 credit hours and working 60-70 hours a weeks, and so my parents want to be able to get ahold of me. However, when I was home, I was home, not on my phone, and I wasn't allowed to text cuz it was so expensive. The plan cost me 39.99 and YES it cost ME! I had to pay for it.
I will let my kids have a cell phone when they are gone more than home and I need to be able to get ahold of them. However, they WILL pay for their portion on their own, and they WILL NOT have text messaging. It cost too much, and besides, I feel that it is my responsibility to keep tabs on my children and how am I supposed to do that when I don't know what is or isn't being text...
Computers will be limited too. it was the way i was raised, and it is the way I will raise!
Im 15, and I haven't had a phone my entire life. Sure it's wreaking havoc on my social life because everyone in my school knows me as the girl without a cell phone but I understand why my parents don't want me to have one.
I think the right time to give a kid a cell phone is when they start going out by themselves more, there have been countless times when I was at the mall alone waiting for my dad to pick me up while my friends have already gone home. It would have been nice to at least have a cell phone to hear my dad's voice saying, "Im coming, Im coming."
For one, I wouldn't allow some 5th grader to have a cell phone, or a Blackberry of all brands. Talk about $500 going down the drain the minute they destroy it. So I honestly don't see how parents are letting their kiddies have cell phones (much less expensive ones) at such a young age.
I've seen some 12-year old with a Macbook once, too. Now that's even scarier.
Kids lack communication skills as it is...all this texting makes it even worse. In twenty years no one will know how to communicate without punching buttons with their thumbs.
i'm a grad student who has had a cell phone since i was a junior in high school. i didn't get a texting plan till last year. i use my phone pretty often, but no more than i used the landline before i had a cell. my ability to text on my phone got out of whack several months ago and now i can get texts but can't send them. i've made no attempt to fix it -- i don't really need it.
i think giving kids phones that young just further disengages them from real life and real interaction. it is incredibly scary.
Im sixteen. my parents didnt give me a phone until 8th grade. and that was only because id ride around the neighborhood on my bike with my friends goign house to house and my parents liked to know where i was And also because i was tying up the landline. I do use it alot but i could live without it. Part of the time i forget it in my room or i cant use it cuz im driving. And when i do have it, i know when not to use it.
Seeing these 8 yr old kids with cell phones is ridiculous. If you seriously want your kid to ignore you why dont you just not talk to them
Well we live in a dead zone so cell phone's don't work here at home, the teens have one to call home for rides, there is no text messaging ( we have that and internt blocked on there phones). And we check daily online to see what numbers are calling them and who they are calling.
Cell phones are for when they have outside activies that they may need to get a hold of us. And they can have the phone taken away for misuse.
I first got a cell phone in 9th grade. We lived close to the school, so it prevented my mom from having to wait around for me so much when I got back from sporting events or band competitions (yes, I was a band geek). I would call her when I got back to the school. I didnt use it much, and it was expected to be used only for certain things. I have had a cell phone ever since. I still dont use it much. There are many days when I detest them. It seems rare that drivers arent on their cell phones anymore!
Perhaps the best 3 months of my life since having a cell phone were spent abroad. I refused to pay for a cell phone when there were pay phones everywhere. I was the only one out of about 30 people who didnt get one. It was heaven to not be tied down with the annoyance! If I had a landline in my house, I would totally get rid of the cell phone! But since I dont use it much, it is cheaper than a landline (because everyone I call is long distance).
Some days I curse the inventor of the cell phone. It has produced so many negative things!
im 18 and have had my cellphone since i was 16, it originally was because i got my license and all. Ever since November ive had texting and well i am paying for it cause my parents dont believe i need it
I was a junior in college, and I kicked and screamed about it the whole way. My parents insisted that I have it. I wouldn't have one now, except our home is so rural it doesn't have a landline.
i'm 21 and only got a cell phone when i started college (age 17). went thru all of my life before that just fine without a cell phone. kids are so spoiled these days.
My dad bought me a cell phone when I was 12 years old. I didn't use it until I got my license 4 years later! Now, I only use it for emergencies and rarely, if ever, text. Just not my thing-I get all twitchy trying to text somebody. It's just easier to call them!
I had a job as a nursery worker, and this mom brought in her two kids, aged 5 and 7. And they both had cellphones! Not the kiddy, Disney-themed Skype phones, but actual adult cellphones. Those kids spent more time on their cellphones than playing with the toys and other children in the nursery.
And yes, the health risk does concern me. Since I don't use cell phones that much, I think the risk is minimal, but if my kid ever started texting, calling 24/7, I'd probably pull the plug on the phone.
I've been thinking about this issue a little, so it's funny you bring it up! Though I'm only a kid myself, I have an idea of what to do about my own kids and phones. I've narrowed it down to two options; Tough luck or crazy. I'll either make them the last in their classes to have a phone, and have them borrow friends/ be independant and not call all the time. Oooor, make them the first in their whatever grade (by that time who knows how early it will go!) and give them restricted phones. Teach some responsibility.
I think kids are starting to get them way to fast. I did not get a cell phone tell I started to hang out more with my friends and was away from home more. Id say I was around 16-17ish. Even then it was a pre-paid phone and I had to pay to refill it. When I have children I think that will be the way I go about it. Pre-paid is good. No nasty bills to worry about hidden fees.. etc.. I had my far share of that junk recently I wouldnt want to have to deal with it when my kid is 17..oh god! Anyways the only other phone I would get for my child if they were young would be this phone http://www.engadget.com/2005/12/03/verizon-gets-lgs-migo-emergency-phone/
There is not texting, only 5 programmable numbers in it, with one being 911.. I think that would be a good idea for a smaller child esp when they go out.. field trips etc.. but thats just my thought! Great topic!
Contrary to popular belief, I don't think it's a bad thing that 6th graders (my sister included) have cell phones. Okay, Texting and constant chatter and racking up minutes isn't necessary, and is a bit unhealthy at that age. But I think my mom's got the right idea.
My sister is 12. And she has a pre-paid cell phone. This way she has a way to reach any of us when she is at a friend's house or some other outing... and a bonus, we have a way to get a hold of her instead of having to memorize 18 numbers for her friends' houses. My mom only pays for the minimum amount of minutes to keep the phone activated every 3 months. My sister has to pay for any additional minutes if she wants (and a 12 year old with no job can't afford that.) It is well controlled and I think a good plan for emergency situations. She isn't one of those "omg my cell!" preteens.
Another interesting idea: EVERY cell phone with a charged battery will call 911 regardless of whether or not it has prepaid minutes or a service plan attached to it. The call is free. This means you can buy a cheap used cell phone for your child and they can have it for emergencies... without a contract, abusing the privelage, using it for social reasons, or the high cost. All you have to do is keep it charged. I don't think that's a bad idea at all.
Because of their obnoxious users, cell phones get a bad rap. They are actually more than convenient... they can be very useful, and just because it is new technology that people have lived without in the past doesn't mean it isn't important to take advantage of them now.
I definitely could last without a cell phone, I got my first one in 6th grade but that lasted about two weeks, and although I was sad at the first day when my dad decided to take it back, I was relieved afterwards. Then my parents decided to get me one as a Christmas gift when I was in 8th grade, and yeah, it's nice to have one, really it is. Including privacy reasons and its less of a hassel to have to ask your parents to use their phones when you want to use it. Now, going to be a junior, for the 2nd summer in a row, my phone has broken and it's been over a month. I mean, I do want my phone back just to get intouch with friends and whatnot but it's easier to not have one at the same time. No worrying about having to charge it, one less phone bill to pay [with a family of 7, everyone having their own phone, it is expensive] and not worrying if you don't have it on you. If anything, I use my mom's to call someone if needeed or whatever. The risk of brain tumors may be just a rumor but you never know, precautions should be used. The earliest I'd get my future child a cell phone is when they begin driving but I would definitely set restrictions. People are crazy these days, texting while driving and causing accidents. They're so into their messages that they end up hurting someone or themselves serverly just for a message that probably could have waited until they reached their destination.
I didn't really hit a big "craze" with my cellphone. I'm just always too lazy to answer back and I realized that if I "were" to use my cellphone that often, it's increasing the bill .__. And I guess, it's just a faze for some people and you'll have to wait until they're mature enough to realize that there ARE better things to do and accomplish.
By the way, I got my cellphone in 6th grade which I rarely used and just left at home a majority of the time. HAHA. They just wanted me to have one since it's getting pretty dangerous nowadays.
Kids should not have cell phones until they are able to drive. If they break the phone, tough. Parents should not keep replacing phones for their irresponsible teenagers. It teaches them instant gratification and lessens the value of earning and ownership. If you can't be responsible with a small electronic device, what makes you think you're responsible with a large gas-driven accident-on-wheels?
I'm not a parent, but I do volunteer with my church's youth group. And while most of my middle school girls have cell phones (and I take advantage of that to text them and keep in touch), I completely disagree with the idea.
I do think it's ok to have a pre-paid or dial-only-certain-numbers-parents control cell phone for middle schoolers, so that they can coordinate rides from point A to point B. But hours upon hours of texting and talking is ridiculous. I went to a movie last night and a kid about 3 rows up texted continually through out the movie, which made me angry. He paid money to see the movie... could he not put down his phone for 2 hours??? The light was bugging almost everyone seated behind him, and since he was in the middle of the theater, that was a lot of people. My gosh.
my kids wont be aloud to have one til they have a steady job to pay for it...too expensive on our budget.
I got my first cellular phone when I got my first job at 15...first it cost me $250 dollars and I had to pay to keep it in service (let's just say that it didn't last that long). I don't think I was mature enough to have one, despite the fact that I had a job,besides I only got it for the fashion.
I personally believe that children should have restricted cell phones...yes the one that you program a limited number of phone numbers in. It's convenient and you don't have to worry about who your child is talking to.
To see a six or seven year old with a cell phone is ridiculous...who are they calling? What is the purpose of them having one; these are children who've recently finished kindergarten and are starting the first grade. It's sad that the first thing they're going to learn is how to send a text message. It's a very bad thing for it robs children of their communication skills, for now they walk around talking like they text.
My children will only have restricted cell phones until I deem it necessary for them to have their own contract. Text messaging will be out of the question, for it is not required for daily function. I don't care if it makes them uncool, I wasn't raised to be dependent on a cell phone and neither will they.
I didn't have a cell until I was 18 and could get it myself but that was back a long time ago when they weren't any where near as commonplace as they are today. I did get my first "beeper" when I was 16. My daughter will get a cell phone, with a lot of restrictions, when it becomes necessary, probably sometime in high school because there's no way her father is letting her out of the house alone any time before that, even high school would be lucky for her!
I'm 17, I got my cell phone when I was 13. I wasn't supposed to get one until I started driving, but we had a little incident where my grandma thought I got kidnapped in the mall because she couldn't find me (she had told me to meet her in the wrong place). I don't use my cell much. I text occasionally, not every day, and I use it to call my mom when I'm driving (well, not when I'm driving, when I reach the place I'm going). Its nice to have, but I could live without it.