Are you ever SHOCKED by how butt-ignorant *SOME* young people are?

[Igel]

290. No, it's different.

When I hung out with friends and we all sat around passing each other notes, it was to be weird.

Now I run across groups of students "hanging out" and I've actually seen them text each other rather than speak--they could include others not there in the conversation. The point being that they were with friends that they had little to say to.

Instead they hung out with A, B, C, and D while A spoke with his friends, B with her friends, C with her friends, and D with his friends.

They use their phone the same way. Overheard by a student violating the rules:
"Hi, it's me." ...
"Nothing. I'm here." ...
"You know, here." ...
"Where're you?" ...
"Oh. In class. I should do that now, too." ...
"Well, okay." (click)


The guy he was calling was sitting in my classroom. He was calling his friend to let him know he was about to sit down next to him in class.

Some people have facial tics. Others have verbal tics. This guy had a cell-phone tic. Cost the guy the fine when he went to retrieve his phone from the main office.

BTW, silent texting does disrupt the class. "Mr. Igel, I'm sorry, can you repeat the last 3 points? I missed them." "Mr. Igel, I did my lab wrong. I didn't hear you explain the directions. Can I do the lab in class tomorrow?" "Mr. Igel, how did you do that problem? I wasn't paying attention." And when I let a student in my class waste 3 minutes for each of 28 other students, I'm fairly sure that the recipient is doing just about the same for some other teacher's class.

And I do let my phone ring during class. Today it was to let me know that my mother, for whom I'm court appointed guardian, was taken to the hospital and I had to give permission for treatment. For my students, it's so John can tell Pete that John's girl was talking to Sue's boyfriend. I can see how they're similar.