TEXT VII

No mobile phones at school

Read the text and put the paragraphs into the correct order.

Furthermore, parents who work may need to contact their children. For example, if a parent has to work late, the student has to be told if arrangements have been made for a relative or neighbour to look after them.

In conclusion, I feel that students should be allowed to take mobile phones to school for use in an emergency. However, all phones should certainly be turned off during lessons.

Nowadays more and more students bring their mobile phones to school. While I believe that students should carry mobile phones in case of an emergency, I am strongly opposed to these phones being used at school, particularly in the classroom.

On the other hand, nothing is more disruptive during a lesson than the sound of a mobile phone ringing or playing an annoying tune. Moreover, students who send and receive text messages in class are not paying attention to the lesson.

Firstly, many students travel to and from school without their parents. Therefore, it is important for them to have a mobile phone in case they need help or have an accident on the way to school or home.

Read the text and discuss it with the partner.

I haven’t got a mobile phone and I don’t want one. I don’t really know why - I just hate them. If you’ve got a mobile phone, it means people can contact you at any time. Personally, I sometimes want to get away from the hospital, my kids and my mother, and be on my own. I don't want people ringing me all the time. The other thing is, I hate the way some people behave when they have mobile phones. Sometimes when I talk to patients and their relatives, their phone rings and they answer it. I’m trying to tell them they’ve got some terrible disease and they’ve only got a few months to live, and they’re talking to some friend about going shopping or where they get their hair cut! I just think it’s so rude!

TEXT VIII

Telephone stories

Read for fun.

Jiang

The other evening, I was at home in my flat and I was feeling really homesick. I was really missing my girlfriend, Hong Jie. She’s back home in China and China’s seven hours ahead of Ireland where I’m studying, so it was in the middle of the night there. But I thought I’d ring her anyway, because I just really needed to talk to her and tell her how much I loved her. Anyway, I phoned her on my mobile and a woman's voice answered - she sounded a bit tired - and I just started talking. “Hi, it’s me. Sorry to phone you so late, but I just had to ring you.” And then I just went on saying how much I missed her and all kinds of other personal stuff, and then suddenly the woman on the other end of the line said, “Who is this?” I was so embarrassed I hung up straightaway. When I looked again at the number I had dialled, I realised I’d called my mum by mistake. I don’t know if she recognised my voice, but she never said anything about it!

Emilie

About a year ago, I met this guy while I was on holiday. He came from the same town as me and seemed quite nice. We got on quite well, so we swapped telephone numbers and said we would meet up when we were back in England. Anyway, we went out together one night and I didn’t have a very good time. He was a bit strange with me - quite serious - and he obviously wanted to go out with me as his girlfriend. The next time he rang, I just made some excuse to say I couldn’t meet him. The same day he rang again and I fold him I was busy. He didn’t lake the hint, though, because he kept on ringing me again, .and again and again. I told him I wasn’t interested and that he should stop calling me, but he took no notice. He started ringing and texting me ten or fifteen times a day. In the end, I had to change my number.

Rebecca

I was on the train going to a meeting and I was trying to do some work. There was this guy setting opposite me who spent the whole journey talking really loudly on his mobile. They were all really stupid conversations as well. I asked him to go and talk somewhere else or talk a bit more quietly, but he didn’t take any notice. I didn’t get any work done and by the end of the journey, I was so annoyed I wanted to hit him.

Discuss these questions with a partner.

1. Have you ever had any experiences like the ones described in the stories?

2. How much do you use your mobile phone? Do you ever answer it when you’re on a bus or train? When you’re in class? While you’re eating? When do you switch it off?

3. How well do you usually know somebody before you give them your number?

4. Have you ever had to change your number or your e-mail address? Why?

TEXT IX