My life as a substitute, and as an educator, encountered a semi-ethical dilemma about a month ago.  No, I did nothing that will my result in my face becoming plastered on the evening news, nor did I destroy my career in any other manner.  However, I did break a cardinal rule at one of the schools in which I usually teach:  I allowed students to use their iPods and iPhones in class!  Okay, before you reach for the phone to call the local authorities – so as to have my teaching licenses revoked – let me explain.

My first count of technology use occurred in an upper level Spanish class.  It is standard policy at this particular school that cell phones and mp3 players are strictly forbidden.  Of course, when a substitute teacher is manning the helm, these rules go out the window in the minds of most students.  Usually, I enforce these rules of the road, however this time I hesitated in order to do a little undercover observation.  My expectations were that these devices were being used to listen to music or to text message friends in other classes – since that is typically the case.  To my chagrin, they were using them for…study aids!  I overheard one young man whisper to the young lady across the aisle, “Check out this translator app.  It’s much better than our dictionaries over on the shelf!”  The girl looked over his shoulder and smiled, followed by the two students passing the iPhone back and forth during class.

It turns out this was not an isolated incident either.  Two other students were “playing” with their iPhones to do the same thing.  These kids, on their own, found study materials that surpassed the effectiveness of those aids provided by their teacher.  This bridge to higher learning happened with the use of contraband, but how could I bring down the law on these resourceful, intelligent minds?  After all, isn’t that the kind of forward thinking we want our sons and daughters to acquire and use as leaders?

If a member of faculty or administration had walked past the open door and discovered this travesty, we all surely

would have been disciplined.  However, I assure you all that it was not my intent to circumvent authority or school procedures – or to display disrespect to school administration.  Rather, I saw a real learning moment going on in the classroom and took on a the-ends-justify-the-means stance in maintaining this environment of achievement.

Check back next week to learn how I discovered student-initiated learning through use of forbidden technology, and what I did about it.