Legal Clips, [July 2006]
Citing disruption to the school setting and safety, schools in Comstock Park and Grand Rapids, Michigan have enacted policies to forbid iPods and other electronic devices in school. A principal at a Comstock Park school indicated that students listen to hard-core rap or rock music while in school, which present inappropriate messages to students. "It's a safety issue," says Grand Rapids Public Safety Director Larry Johnson. "If kids have headphones on, they might not hear an emergency bell…." The presence of iPods has also been an issue in other states, colleges, and even internationally. A school in Sydney, Australia banned iPods, believing they fostered social isolation. However, students across the country use the iPod to listen to "podcasts" on topics being studied as well as to interview people and record their favorite books for future playback. Other uses for iPods include listening to foreign songs in order to understand culture and language or using the photo feature to create flash cards. Despite this, at Pine Island Elementary school in Comstock Park, Principal Jan Fetrow indicates unbeneficial use of iPods is a growing problem.

Grand Rapids Press
By Ron Cammel & Dave Murray
[Link to full story]

[Editor's Note: According to Education Week, New York City's ban on cell phones in schools is generating controversy and threats of litigation asserting that the school district is obligated to try "less-intrusive possibilities," such as disciplining students for improper phone use. COSA members and members of NSBA National Affiliate school districts can access an overview on "Cell Phones, Cameras and Other 21st Century Intrusions Into Learning: Legal Responses for Today's Boards and Educators" by COSA board member Dean Pickett of Mangum, Wall, Stoops & Warden in Flagstaff, Arizona and Christopher Thomas of the Arizona School Boards Association. The article can be downloaded by non-members for a fee from COSA's new E-doc store at the last link below. For more information on the E-doc store, see the sidebar ad above.]
Education Week
By Catherine Gewertz
[Link to full story]

2005 COSA School Law in Review
By A. Dean Pickett and Chris Thomas
[Link to full article]
[COSA E-doc store link to article]