Are teachers allowed to kick you out of the classroom for looking at your phone?

[LokiSuaveHP]

I know in a lot of High Schools, they just confiscate.

I know college/university are used interchangeably in the U.S., but yeah, as far as I gather, a university professor can kick you out of their class for basically whatever they like. Of course, you are allowed to report them to their head or the Dean if they're acting tyrannical, but you shouldn't have had your phone out. You should have known that there was a zero tolerance policy for having your phone out in class, and it sure as shit should have been muted before you went in there.

I know tons of classes where it will be confiscated till the end of class, and plenty of professors that will do it. I know the dirty glares that happen when people's phones go off during lectures or during rehearsals. To be honest, I love your teacher for having a zero tolerance policy and treating people to it. If your girlfriend called, or your parents called, and you felt that it was that important that you needed to answer it and leave at that moment and take an absence, then that's your call.

If it was in the course outline, this is on you. You could have adjusted your behavior, changed classes, or just learned to deal with it. But no, your teacher was not in the wrong, and at most universities was very allowed to do what she did.

 

[Mad World]

Wow... what a stupid thing for a teacher to do. That's really pathetic. Almost everyone has a cell phone these days. If it's vibrating and you're trying to turn it off, I see no problem. When the semester's over, you should just e-mail her, letting her know how stupid you think she acted. Or - better yet - say it to her face.

I had one teacher (she was actually a really good teacher) who had a rule where if your phone went off, you had to dance in front of the entire class to your ringtone. Personally, I think it's a little much, but she was really nice and funny, so no one really had an issue with her.

 

[shroomie]

As for being allowed to kick you out, yes she can but I'm fairly certain she can't mark you as absent or deduct marks from a test provided you don't use your phone in said test.

 

[badgersprite]

Allowed to? Yes, probably. Doesn't make it any less of a dick move on the teacher's part.

 

[Mikeyfell]

I am a college student, and I have a teacher who is hard core against cell phones in the class. (that and she just acts like all the students are children) When ever someone's phone goes off in their back pack, she writes their name down and when the next test comes around she subtracts points from them.

The other day my phone was on vibrate so she couldn't hear it, but it just kept going off so I took it out to shut it off. She caught me and asked what I was hiding, and told me to show the class. I put up no resistance and gave her no trouble, I just said "my phone was going off so I was shutting it off" and showed that it was indeed my phone. She then pointed to the door and said "good bye" I was baffled and asked "Are you really kicking me out?" and she angrily said "Yes, I have a zero tolerance on phones" once again I didn't fight this and just left. She also marked it as if I was absent for that day of class

I am just curious, are teachers actually allowed to do that? To subtract points from tests and kick students out and mark it against their attendance? I have the class tomorrow, I am not sure if she is gonna do anything else when I get there.

College professors? Yes, they are judge, jury and executioner in their class room.

So long as it's not actually against the law they can do anything. My friend was texting in his Algebra class and got caught. The teacher made him read the entire exchange out-loud to the whole class or he wouldn't get the study guide for the final.

Kicking you out for just turning off your phone sucks. But, and be honest, if you weren't just turning your phone off when you got caught what would you have said?

 

[HotFezz8]

snip.

im english and therefore slightly baffled by the "college" part, is that our equivalent of GCSE level (12-16) A level (17-18) or university (~19-~23)?

but to answer your question;
GCSE level: err, depends on the schools policy, they will almost certainly want you to enter a disciplinary procedure before you are just sent out of the classroom
A - Level: yes, although the school may insist on disciplinary procedures first
University: absolutely yes. entirely up to the lecturer.

and do i think they should kick you out if you have a phone? (with the caveat, i would warnings first, your teachers a bit draconian)
GCSE: yes
A - Level: mmm, depends if you always have it out
Uni: no, your a adult. besides you probably live away from home, what if its a emergency?

 

[Eclectic Dreck]

The very short version of a much longer answer is yes. Yes she can.

When you are in a class you exist under the rule of your professor. Yes in college you pay for the privileged of attendance but you do so at the pleasure of your professor. Their function is to provide the opportunity to learn and if they think you aren't taking advantage of it they are well within their rights to remove you from the classroom or refuse to give you credit for work. And, if you want to take it up with anyone, keep in mind that if it is in the syllabus, it may as well be written in stone by God himself.

There is an excellent solution to the problem of course: shut the phone off while you're in class. Then you can avoid such confrontations in the future which is handy because, when push comes to shove, unless the professor is doing something illegal (and they aren't if you're in the United States) or in direct violation of University rules (and they probably aren't) then the University will side with the professor no matter how unfair the professor might be.

 

[Char-Nobyl]

I am a college student, and I have a teacher who is hard core against cell phones in the class. (that and she just acts like all the students are children) When ever someone's phone goes off in their back pack, she writes their name down and when the next test comes around she subtracts points from them.

A bit draconian, but seems within her power so far.

The other day my phone was on vibrate so she couldn't hear it, but it just kept going off so I took it out to shut it off. She caught me and asked what I was hiding, and told me to show the class. I put up no resistance and gave her no trouble, I just said "my phone was going off so I was shutting it off" and showed that it was indeed my phone. She then pointed to the door and said "good bye" I was baffled and asked "Are you really kicking me out?" and she angrily said "Yes, I have a zero tolerance on phones" once again I didn't fight this and just left. She also marked it as if I was absent for that day of class

Kicking you out of class, again, I'm pretty sure is within her power, assuming she's tenured. Marking you absent, not so much. That's essentially falsifying records based on a ridiculously shaky standard.

I am just curious, are teachers actually allowed to do that? To subtract points from tests and kick students out and mark it against their attendance? I have the class tomorrow, I am not sure if she is gonna do anything else when I get there.

Two questions:

A) Is she the department head?

B) Is she tenured?

If no to both, I suggest talking to your adviser. Because ejecting your from class and then having the gall to mark you absent for it goes beyond being a dick move. It's the sort of thing that can have a rapid and nasty mark on your grade if your school has fairly tight attendance policies. Similarly, college classes aren't cheap. She's costing you a noticeable amount of money if she's ejecting you from a class.

Or if none of that pans out, drop the class. Even if you're out of the add-drop period, you can probably cite this sort of thing as constituting a hostile learning environment.

 

[RaikuFA]

I am a college student, and I have a teacher who is hard core against cell phones in the class. (that and she just acts like all the students are children) When ever someone's phone goes off in their back pack, she writes their name down and when the next test comes around she subtracts points from them.

A bit draconian, but seems within her power so far.

The other day my phone was on vibrate so she couldn't hear it, but it just kept going off so I took it out to shut it off. She caught me and asked what I was hiding, and told me to show the class. I put up no resistance and gave her no trouble, I just said "my phone was going off so I was shutting it off" and showed that it was indeed my phone. She then pointed to the door and said "good bye" I was baffled and asked "Are you really kicking me out?" and she angrily said "Yes, I have a zero tolerance on phones" once again I didn't fight this and just left. She also marked it as if I was absent for that day of class

Kicking you out of class, again, I'm pretty sure is within her power, assuming she's tenured. Marking you absent, not so much. That's essentially falsifying records based on a ridiculously shaky standard.

I am just curious, are teachers actually allowed to do that? To subtract points from tests and kick students out and mark it against their attendance? I have the class tomorrow, I am not sure if she is gonna do anything else when I get there.

Two questions:

A) Is she the department head?

B) Is she tenured?

If no to both, I suggest talking to your adviser. Because ejecting your from class and then having the gall to mark you absent for it goes beyond being a dick move. It's the sort of thing that can have a rapid and nasty mark on your grade if your school has fairly tight attendance policies. Similarly, college classes aren't cheap. She's costing you a noticeable amount of money if she's ejecting you from a class.

Or if none of that pans out, drop the class. Even if you're out of the add-drop period, you can probably cite this sort of thing as constituting a hostile learning environment.

uh, she can throw his ass out for wearing a shirt with a color she dislikes and you cant do anything about it, hes already paid for classes, shes been paid, she can refuse to teach for the semester and its perfectlly legal

thats how college works, give them money, hope you get accepted and pray your teacher actually teaches

 

[Riddle78]

I don;t think they should punt you from the class. But I will whole-heartedly support them taking the phone for a week. Or more. Really,cell phones have no place in an educational institution.

 

[Jake the Snake]

A college does this? I'm baffled. That doesn't seem right. Honestly.

 

[CptCamoPants]

It's college. In college it isn't the TEACHERS classroom. It's the STUDENTS. You know, the people paying thousands of dollars to be there.

 

[warrcry13]

Well this is stupid. You are paying to be taught. Yes I understand kicking you out if you are chatting on it, but you were not. I wouldn't have been able to deal with what she did. I would have said and I have zero tolerance for having my money stolen. So if you want to continue along this path then let's continue. I'll win, but I'm willing to humor you,

 

[Char-Nobyl]

uh, she can throw his ass out for wearing a shirt with a color she dislikes and you cant do anything about it, hes already paid for classes, shes been paid, she can refuse to teach for the semester and its perfectlly legal

You're joking, right? Because that isn't true in the slightest. See, teaching at a university is a job, as you've apparently forgotten. Professors have department requirements to fulfill, and especially if they're not tenured, they can get canned just like any other sub-par worker.

thats how college works, give them money, hope you get accepted and pray your teacher actually teaches

Again, no, not in the slightest. And if this is genuinely what you believe, I don't think you've ever even met someone who went to college, much less been to one yourself.

 

[Char-Nobyl]

Clegane]

Clegane]

She can mark you down for it, sure, but she's not allowed to mark you as absent.

You should report her.

I think you'll find she is. If she has stated that as part of classes code of conduct you cannot use your phone then looking at your phone can be considered a breach of conduct and as such she is in her rights to mark you absence.

Like I said earlier, taking a register isn't just about who's in the class. It's also used as fire registry, and it opens up a whole can of worms if you mark someone down as absent when they were actually in the classroom.

Yeah but this isn't the same as being in school, in college the register is only used for grade allocation.

Considering all the security upheavals that've taken place since the VT shootings, I think attendance actually does play a role in more than just that.

Besides, a good number of universities have attendance requirements that if you drop below them, you automatically fail the course. Miss a certain number of classes (it's not all that many, either) and your grade starts dropping like a rock, regardless of your performance.

 

[TConti]

If its in the syllabubs and you signed/agreed to it then yes its possible. It might also be a college rule that some professors enforce while others don't. I have a professor that if your phone goes off in class he answers it, but if it goes off during an exam he takes your test that moment and kicks you out of the class.

 

[Dogstile]

I am a college student, and I have a teacher who is hard core against cell phones in the class. (that and she just acts like all the students are children) When ever someone's phone goes off in their back pack, she writes their name down and when the next test comes around she subtracts points from them.

The other day my phone was on vibrate so she couldn't hear it, but it just kept going off so I took it out to shut it off. She caught me and asked what I was hiding, and told me to show the class. I put up no resistance and gave her no trouble, I just said "my phone was going off so I was shutting it off" and showed that it was indeed my phone. She then pointed to the door and said "good bye" I was baffled and asked "Are you really kicking me out?" and she angrily said "Yes, I have a zero tolerance on phones" once again I didn't fight this and just left. She also marked it as if I was absent for that day of class

I am just curious, are teachers actually allowed to do that? To subtract points from tests and kick students out and mark it against their attendance? I have the class tomorrow, I am not sure if she is gonna do anything else when I get there.

Ok, lets break this down for the people who seem to be reading this wrong.

Subtracting points from tests

This isn't something that should happen in College. School? Sure, tests mean nothing. College? Considering you're paying for those tests, handicapping you is highly unusual. Note, people who are attacking other people randomly, I said unusual, not against the rules. However OP, I would get that checked out, that seems rather off.

His phone was on vibrate

Everyone is assuming that its a loud obnoxious vibrate rather than say, the one I have, where its set to the lowest setting and at most, could be heard by someone next to me, if it was in my hand when it went off. Otherwise, nobody else could hear it, aside from that...

He was turning it off to stop it from being a distraction

He was honest about what he was doing, it would have taken no more than 10 seconds, turning off your phone because it won't stop going off isn't irresponsibly in the slightest. Everyone claiming he is seems to have missed this point. Its like people have stopped reading.

Marking absent

This is my biggest complaint. One, fuck you if you think otherwise, she isn't allowed to mark you as absent if you were there on time and she kicked you out. When I was in College in the UK, I was on EMA. One missed lesson meant I didn't get my benefits that week. Guess how I kept myself fed and traveled? (Gotta love being one of the few who used that scheme for what it was intended)

Secondly, fires. If you're marked absent and the building is on fire, guess who isn't gonna come in to look for you. And don't give me that bullshit of "he wasn't in class" because unless it was his last lesson, he's not going home, he'd still be there, waiting for his next one. He's on the premises, he was in his class, he is in.

Aside from that, dear god people, would it kill you to read the actual OP rather than see "phone in class" and start yelling? Please?

Edit:

Last point, i got a text in my first week of college. I had to go to the hospital. There are valid reasons for having a phone on in class and numerous ways to have it so it doesn't distract people. I wish people would realise that sometimes rather than screaming for blood.

 

[Dastardly]

Attendence is also taken as part of a fire register. So actually, it's very much illegal for a person not to be noted as attending, when they are.

Well then it's a good thing he wasn't present. He was told to leave the class, and then he was marked absent.

Oh, I know that, but it opens up all sorts of legal trouble if something were to happen.

Sorry if it sounded like I was trying to attack your argument.

Ah, gotcha. I can agree that it could, in extreme circumstances, cause problems if the teacher is giving an inaccurate inventory of the classroom. If someone is in the class, I wouldn't agree with the teacher counting them absent -- if the student is being disruptive enough to warrant that, they should also be asked to leave.

 

[Salad Is Murder]

When I was hospitalized for my pregnancy (had an at-risk pregnancy, and needed to be monitored), my husband ran into a little of this. He was student in a university and carried his phone, on vibrate with him at all times in case he needed to get back to the hospital if something happened...you know, like if tiny people came out of me. One of his instructors was a real hard-ass about it and my husband pretty much just told the guy to go fuck himself.

I don't know if there was head-butting involved, but knowing my husband I wouldn't be too shocked to hear it.