Rules should be upfront and posted! It should be very clear to both the kids and the parents what the rules are.
That said it is inappropriate for kids to have a cell phone in school/yeshiva. Cells phones should be turned off and locked in the individual’s locker till they leave at the end of the day or take their lunch break and go off the premises. Coin phones should be available for student use during the school days and office phones should be available for emergencies.
Consequences should be clearly listed in the rules and not thought of as you go along such as the first time one is caught with a cell phone in school it will be confiscated and returned at the end of the day. The second time that same student is caught with a cell phone it will be confiscated and returned at the end of the week. The third time the student is caught with a cell phone it will be returned only to the parent of that individual.
I know of a school that had a special plastic organizer similar to a cosmetic or shoe organizer that they hung on a door in the office. When they confiscated a cell phone they put a label on the pocket with the student’s name, date and offense number in addition to when it was supposed to be returned. That is how they kept track of the offenses. It was also easy for the principal, Rosh and guidance counselor to easily see what was going on. If other children went into the office they clearly got the message that they weren’t kidding and were enforcing the rules.
By listing the consequences as well as the rules you are essentially allowing the student to choose their own consequence. In other words, if I break this rule I am choosing to have my cell phone confiscated for the day, or I am choosing to have my cell phone confiscated till the end of the week, or I am choosing to have my cell phone confiscated till my parents come down and retrieve it for me. They can’t blame the staff of the Yeshiva for the consequence, they can’t blame the staff for punishing them and they can’t blame the staff for being unfair. They can’t blame anyone but themselves because they would have known what would happen if they chose to break the rule.
Understand that if a parent allows a child to have a cell phone then the fact that he carries it to and from Yeshiva is an issue between the parents and the child. However once he is under the supervision of the Yeshiva he has to abide by the rules of the Yeshiva and that is important. You can’t control a child from allowing his friends whose parents do not allow their children to use cells from using it, or from going on the internet from doing so. So while on the property of the Yeshiva, the Yeshiva has the obligation to control what is in their power to control. It is also extreme chutzpah to have your cell phone on in the middle of class. It is as chutpadik as playing with a toy or listening to an ipod.