<p>when does a convenience become a necessity?
My gosh, I’m old enough to remember times before everyone had a cell phone. I can remember when a few had them. I can remember when nobody had them.
I am shocked at the tone of a few here- <em>I have kids, I must have a cell phone on</em> Really? A person cannot leave the room to call, or call between classes? I’ve had jobs where my calls were to be on breaks or at lunch, and if there was some unexpected medical emergency an office staffer came to get me.
Maybe if you’re a doctor and a patient is ready for her baby, or a sick child is in the hospital(yet you’re in class), and perhaps a few other extreme situations. It just seems that if you have a sick kid, so sick that you must be available every minute of the day, then that parent is better off being with the kid than in a class. Barring a very few such extremes, I can see few justifications for needing a cell phone on during class.</p>