That depends entirely on the teen. I think it is good for kids to have a responsibility. My daughter has a cell. She is 11. It isn’t fancy, because kids can be rough on things. It is very handy for me. I know I can trust her to obey phone rules. She is very stingy with her minutes. She is not allowed to give out the number without permission. Whenever possible, she makes her social calls with the house phone. However, she has a bad habit of arriving home late from playing out in the ‘hood with her friends. It is not purposeful disobedience. She just gets distracted and forgets to look at a clock. So, I call her home with the phone when curfew creeps near. The phone keeps her from being late and getting scolded. She also takes it with her on out of town trips, to friend’s houses etc. Once it came in very handy when I was unable to pick her up on time, but was able to call and tell the adults she was with that I was sending a friend to do the pick up. It is also with her so that she can dial 911 if the need arises. We’ve used it to call her friends and invite them out with us while we’re already on the road. It is fun and it gives her a chance to exercise good judgment and feel mature.
EDIT: We've had alot of harsh weather here, complete with flash floods and tornados. So when my daughter gets dropped off at a class, I want her to be able to reach me if class gets canceled or something.Why do u think parents should buy teenagers cell phones???
My 16 year old has one, for two reasons. I want him to keep in touch with his friends, and I want to be able to contact him when he is out.
*communicate with friends
*emergencies
*communicate with parents
*handy tool
*access e-mail
*LOTS MORE!!! be creative
They shouldn't. They have no need for them. They want one tell them to get a damn job and buy one themselves.
The only times a parent should bear responsibility for buying a teenager a cell phone would be for things like:
-teen is in sports and it's the most assured way of being able to reach each other
-teen is out a lot
-parent just feels better knowing the teen has a phone for emergency purposes
If a teen wants a phone for music, texting, chatting with friends, etc., it should be the teen's responsibility, imho. If the teen already has a phone for parental reasons, then s/he should pitch in to pay for minutes, texting, etc.
As we intend to homeschool, the only real reason for our son to have one would be emergency contact. In that case, we would buy one that allows only INCOMING calls from our numbers (since we'd pay for that phone).
If he simply wanted one, I'd feel he needed to get a pre-paid phone and pay for the upkeep from his allowance or job.
I grew up without a cellphone, don't have one now, and get by just fine. A cellphone is a nicety, not a necessity.
I'll be buying my son a cell phone when he's old enough to be out without adult supervision, or when he's old enough to be at sports/drama practice, etc. without his dad or me. (Right now he's 10.) Once he's alone for large periods of time, we want him to be able to contact us when he needs to.
However, he already knows that if he chooses to use it irresponsibly (texting, chatting with his friends till all hours, etc.) that he'll be paying the bill. He has too much respect for his bank account to do that :-)
The orginal reason I got a cell phone was because in middle school I used to stay after school for different programs, and if I needed to get in touch with my mom to let her know I was staying, something got cancelled, or something ended early.
Even though I'm homeschooled now I still use it if I'm at a youth group event and need my parents to pick me up or if out without my parents and they need to get in touch with me.
So, basically to answer the question parents should buy teenagers cell phones if there is a constant need to get in touch with their teenager because for some reason they aren't with them. (There were too many pronouns in that sentence)
i think its an excellent idea when they start to go out for long periods of time with out an adult. eg. when they go to parties. so i say when there about 15-17? of course they'll abuse it at some stage. but i suppose thats how they have to learn.
i bought one for my 13 yo because i wanted him to be free to get around and still have backup if he needs something.
I don't think they should. My parents didn't buy me one I had to pay for it myself. However in this day and age I probably would if I had kids so they could have something to use in an emergency. You never know anymore.
- emergency situations
- helps parents communicate better with their son or daughter
- helps parents keep track of their child and make sure they are safe and where they suppose to be
=]
Our reason was to communicate with him. (smile)
It comes in handy when practice is extended or cut short.
It comes in handy when he gets an opportunity to go out during the day and needs permission to leave the house while we are at work.
We can keep in contact when he is out and about with his friends.
We are a blended family and he can go with his ';real dad'; anytime and a phone helps us keep up with him.
His cell phone has kept our life a bit less uncomplicated.
It all depends on their circumstances.
In some places, there isn't a lot of reception and it might not be worthwhile. Some families can't afford it easily or at all. Some teens may have no need or desire for a cell phone.
I have no objections to anyone buying cell phones for their kids. The parents likely know their own needs and situation well enough to make that decision on their own.
My daughter babysat a 7 year old with a cell phone. It worked for the family.
:D
EDIT: Oops, I missed the why, thought it was merely do.
Why is because they want to be able to keep in touch with their kids wherever they are. And maybe the kids want to keep in touch with friends and family wherever they are.
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