The invention of mobile phone has changed the structure of global communication hierarchy. It is not only used as a mere communication tool but also act as an entertainer, lifestyle support system and even a powerful learning aid.

By powerful learning aid I mean to say, it can even bestow intelligence to children and young people. Many universities in worldwide are now are reconsidering the mobile phone ban on campus. Educational researchers at the University of Nottingham believe it is time that phone bans were reassessed. The researchers have reached this conclusion after a study the consequences of permitting students in five secondary schools to use either their own mobile phones or the new generation of smart phonesin lessons.

The result was astonishingly affable. Within the nine months tenure, 15-20 students used their mobile phones for a wide range of educational purposes or in creativity. Most of the students are engaging in short movies, setting homework reminders, recording a teacher reading a poem, and timing experiments with the phone’s stopwatches. Pupils are more take advantage of smart phones, which could easily connect to the Internet. The students were access revision websites, log into the school email system or transfer electronic files between school and home. The whole research is conducted at 331 pupils in schools in Cambridgeshire, West Berkshire and Nottingham.

Although at the start of study teachers as well as students were quite apprehensive at the thought of new experiment of mobile phone used for learning. However, after their hands on experience, almost all students openly accepted that they had enjoyed the project and felt more motivated.

Some teachers, who were dead against the experimentation, also reassess their views even though staff who took part was already champions of new technology in their schools. The best part of whole process was, the students knew how to use them and this mobile technology gave them more opportunity to express themselves without needing to be constantly supervised.

The students who lacked confidence also widely benefited from the project. However, they recognized that greater use of mobile phones in schools could prove problematical. There were also some negatives in this experiment. For some pupil phones proved an object of distraction and engage in mischievous acts. Allowing students to access the school email id through mobiles would also pose data security risks if passwords were shared.

There also teacher unions who have supported mobile phone bans in schools. Teachers are highly disturbed with the students who are armed with all the modern gadgets like mobile phones, MP3 players, and portable games consoles.

Instead of a blanket ban on mobiles teachers, students and wider community should work together to sort out a middle path and develop policies that will facilitate this powerful new learning tool to be used safely.