Abu Dhabi: Out of 20 students in one class at a private school, 17 had either a Blackberry or an i-Phone, and some even had both.
A random survey by Gulf News in public and private schools and of children between the ages of 12 to 15 years, showed that smartphones have become the choice of a majority (77 per cent) of children and dominate their lives.
While the real need for teenagers to flaunt a sophisticated communication device is questionable, their apparent need to fit in with their groups puts more pressure on teens to acquire such smart and expensive devices.
Parents' views
Mohammad S., the father of a teen, explained that peer pressure is a large contributor to a teenager's need to have these devices. "Pressure from my son drove me to look for ways to get an i-Phone from the US, as it was not yet available in the emirates," he said.
Not all parents are as accommodating — S.S. has taken a firm stand against giving a smartphone to his child as his 14-year-old son spent up to five hours a day playing on a computer, neglecting school and family activities.
"I did not want to duplicate the problem with another electronic gadget," said the father.
Another father took stronger action by destroying his son's phone as he discovered the son exchanging inappropriate pictures with his group of friends.
From the children's perspective, the gadget is used more for social stature. "I don't need it at all … but it's cool to have," said Hesham a 15-year-old boy. "It's just for fun", his friend, Amr added. "I heard so much about it. The applications are cool."
In a technology-based school, however, smartphones are used by the students to put school documents on the phone for later revision, school schedules (classes and exams), alerts to stay organised, check the "course help" and check their grades online.
"Using smartphones in class, despite its benefits, is more hindrance than helpful, and is very distracting", said one teacher.
Social networking
A librarian noted that many students spend their time on Facebook or checking their email. The principal of one school does not object to that, as long as it is within the boundaries set by the school.
"I think it is a responsibility that must be balanced. As educators we prepare the kids for their future and we introduce them to recent technology and how we use it properly and ethically," said the principal.
