When teaching adults, those with families, small children etc, I make the proviso at the beginning of any course that mobile phones are permitted for emergency calls. As a consequence, I share the same privilege.

Dear Issac,

Good question. Use of mobile phones had changed the way all professions work today. As such, it is highly getting impossible for people of many professions to not to look at their phones and to attend to those require their attention.

I recalled my childhood, where we studied in a small class room with a single class teacher teaching almost all the subjects. The class teacher teach all the subjects with his full heart and mind and soul sometimes and some times, he allows us to play and to do what ever we want to do without disturbing the other classes. Yes, indeed, the teacher is a familuy an and he too have moods and emotions based on his family situations.

As such, we do not have any issues and we all study well and many of us are in good positions and there are no complaints on the teachers too.

Today, the communication media is getting wider and wider and becoming more disturbance in nature. Hence the question of attending calls during classes has become an international issue and even questioned as to classify as whether ethical or not.

To me, if it is urgent, it is no harm for the teacher to attend. We all do the same in our professions if it is urgent. Thus, the question of ethical will not arise.

Just to tell you my experience, during my doctoral classes, many of the doctoral students were using their mobiles and not paying attention to the professor's lectures. Is it the ethical problem of the students ?.

Attending to phone call to me in not related to ethical issue, it is related to the individual's discipline and value systems and the situation where in which, htey are attending.

Guess, the above input helps.

Regards.

Dr. Sekar Gopal.

There is nothing unethical in reaching an urgent call in the class. You are the one in charge. But, you do it a way that the flow of teaching and learning will not be distracted.

When teaching adults, those with families, small children etc, I make the proviso at the beginning of any course that mobile phones are permitted for emergency calls. As a consequence, I share the same privilege.

Master, thank you.

Some years ago I attended a lecture by a very distinguished psychiatrist, a Knight of the Realm, no less. His phone rang, which he promptly answered. It was his wife, asking when he was home for dinner.

Sir Gordon, thank you.

If its an urgent phone call; why not?

I agree with Effie Amonoo