The kids are back in school and all my pocket money is going to lunches. We’re up to here with supply lists, activity fees and papers to fill out. I got half way through one of the papers and stopped. There was a blank to fill in that was labeled “Pager Number.” I tucked my chin in and sent my eyes side to side. I wrote in “LOL.”

My husband is a teacher now. He got his license and jumped in mid-school year for another teacher who had moved on for whatever reason. Now I don’t have to tell you that I’m a big geek about needing to use technology and gadgets. Jim is the same way.

He’s all the time trying to find some way to make things interesting and interactive for his students. He makes custom slideshows with music and graphics that make business meeting slideshows look like cave drawings. That’s fine for archaeologists, but with the art of handwriting is deteriorating (not just for doctors and teachers anymore!), and with kids using for everything from Google for homework to a song and timer on their rotating, vibrating toothbrush, it’s time to step it up in the classroom.

It is amazing to me, how far technology has come, compared to how little it is used in the classroom. Practically every kid has a cell phone - heck, my first grader has one - yet they are forbidden at schools. I understand the reasons teachers want them out of site. It’s not to keep kids from talking to their friends, which is inevitable, but rather to keep them from texting back and forth – that’s passing notes using their cell phones, Grandpa. They can also use texting or even Internet on their phones while Brandon is taking a test in one room and Taylor is Googling the answers in the library. They’re good at being covert too, since phones are getting smaller and thinner.

What if kids were allowed to use their cell phones, but had to check them at the door of each room? You know the teachers are bringing their cell phones too, right? You know there are teachers who are checking their Facebook, texting their spouse, updating their “You Won’t Believe What This One Kid Did” blog…

Social media is just too powerful to ignore. What if teachers told kids to put their phones on their desks and get ready for a quiz – using Twitter? Mr. Russell could tweet a question, and his 30 ninth-graders could tweet back the answer – all with their name right next to it. Since you can protect your updates on Twitter, only the classmates would see what is going on with classmate accounts, and the teacher could get all the results of a quiz on one electronic page, without: having to make copies, deciphering weird teen handwriting, the mystery of who left their name off their quiz, or having to circulate a stack of papers that will just hit the trash can after class. Grades could simply be sent back by direct message to each student. Why isn’t this done? It’s an easy way for the teacher to figure out which kids are getting the lesson, in a way that’s interesting to them. A tweet a day keeps the copier repairman away!

Let’s talk about another school-related matter now, before you go to have your Sunday nap. You know from past columns that I have been working with a group called Within REACH to serve the homeless youth of Saline County. Yes, there are plenty here that we need an organization to take care of the needs. In fact, MySaline members were alerted of a new need on Thursday. The stories just break your heart for kids who are left to suddenly try to figure out life on their own.

It’s pretty difficult to be a normal kid without a care when you have just what you’re wearing, you don’t know where you’ll sleep or eat next, and when school is in, it just gets worse. The lunch money, activity fees and school supplies I mentioned above are not a given. I respect programs like the Ralph Bunche Community Action Committee’s backpack program where kids get what they need for school and other backpack programs that send food with the child for the weekend.

On October 31st, Within REACH is holding a benefit that we hope to be the biggest festival and live music concert that Saline County has seen. You can get more information at www.SalineOWeen.com.

You can also hear about SalineOWeen at half-time at the Salt Bowl on September 4th. No, I will not be doing a cheer or twirling a flag. Jim Landers of KEWI has invited me and “Angry” Patrick Beam to talk about SalineOWeen on the air at half-time. KEWI broadcasts Benton Panther games at 690 AM, and live-streams it at www.kewi690am.com, as well as at the game. We’re thrilled for the opportunity to speak about SalineOWeen, and this 37th Salt Bowl game between the Panthers and rivals the Bryant Hornets is a perfect audience. We hope to see you there or at least, we hope you hear us there!

This column by Shelli Russell published in the Benton Courier on August 23, 2009.
See more of Shelli's columns here.