Letter to the Editor: Phones in the Classroom
A newspaper wants every school phone ban to become law. Write a letter to the editor that takes a clear position and answers the strongest argument on the other side.
- Time
- 45 min
- Length
- 280-330 words
Writadia · C2 · Formal letters
NameClassDate
The situation
Last week a national newspaper published an editorial arguing that phones should be banned in every school by law, from the first bell to the last. The editorial was widely shared, and the paper has invited readers to respond. The best letters will be printed next Sunday.
Your task
Write a letter to the editor responding to the editorial. In your letter:
- state your position clearly in the first paragraph
- support it with at least two arguments drawn from experience or evidence
- take the strongest opposing argument seriously and respond to it
- end with a concrete proposal rather than a slogan
Writing toolkit
Open these only when you need them. Try the first draft on your own.
Plan it in steps
- Decide your position in one sentence before you plan anything else.
- Choose the opposing argument you find hardest to answer. That is the one to address.
- Plan four paragraphs: position, argument one, the opposing view and your reply, proposal.
- Write the proposal first, then make sure the rest of the letter leads to it.
- Cut any sentence that only repeats the editorial.
Useful phrases
Opening a letter to the editor
Conceding and countering
Proposing
Tap a phrase to add it to your text. Gaps (…) are selected so you can type over them.
Vocabulary
- blanket ban
- a rule that applies everywhere with no exceptionsA blanket ban ignores the needs of individual schools.
- remedy
- a solution to a problemThe remedy is worse than the problem.
- at first hand
- through your own direct experienceI have seen the effects at first hand.
- unenforceable
- impossible to make people obeyA rule that is unenforceable soon loses respect.
- discretion
- the freedom to decide what is right in a situationHead teachers need discretion.
Model answer (300 words)
Read it after you’ve written your own version. Notice the highlighted parts. The numbers explain why they work.
Dear Editor,
Your editorial of 3 November, "Switch Them Off, By Law", makes a case that is far easier to share than to apply.1 I have taught in secondary schools for fourteen years, and I agree that phones have made concentration harder: I have watched pupils who once read for an hour struggle to manage ten minutes. I do not agree that a national law is the cure.
My school introduced a strict ban three years ago. Lessons became calmer within weeks, and I would not go back. But the ban worked because the staff designed it, explained it to families and adjusted it when it failed: we allowed phones on school trips, for example, after a parent could not reach her son during a delayed coach journey. A law would have made that small, sensible change impossible.2
It would be dishonest to deny the strongest point in your editorial: that schools left to decide alone will not all decide well, and that pupils in weaker schools will pay the price.3 Yet the answer to uneven leadership is support, not compulsion. A school that cannot persuade its own parents to back a phone policy will not be rescued by a sentence in a statute; it will simply have a rule that nobody enforces. Worse, it will teach pupils that rules are things made far away by people who have never met them.
What schools need instead is a clear national expectation, practical guidance on lockers and storage, and money to pay for them. Head teachers should then have the discretion to adapt the rules to their own pupils, and the duty to explain those rules to parents. If the government is serious about attention in classrooms, it should fund the boxes before it writes the law.4
Yours faithfully,
Helen Marsh
- The opening names the editorial and signals disagreement in one line.
- The writer's own evidence supports the argument against a law, not against a ban.
- The writer names the opposing view at its strongest before answering it.
- A concrete, slightly memorable proposal instead of a slogan.
Teacher notes
Focus: concession at C2 is not "Some people say... but I think". Ask students to underline where the model agrees with the editorial, then where it turns.
Discussion before writing (5 min): list every argument for a legal ban on the board. Students vote on the strongest. Each student must answer that one in their letter.
Assessment tip: a letter that never concedes anything rarely reaches the top band for communicative achievement at this level.
Extra challenge
Rewrite the third paragraph from the opposite position: you support the law, and you answer the "schools know best" argument.
Lesson plan
- 5 minWarm-up
Show the situation on the classroom screen and ask: “What would you write in this situation?” Take two or three quick answers.
- 10 minWord pool
Open “Word pool” on the classroom screen. Students make one sentence each with: blanket ban, remedy, at first hand, unenforceable, discretion.
- 12 minModel text
Reveal the model sentence by sentence in “Model text” mode. At each sentence ask: “What job does this sentence do?” Write these phrases on the board: “Your editorial of 3 November ("...") makes a case that is easier to share than to apply.”, “I write as a teacher / parent / student who has seen ... at first hand.”, “It would be dishonest to deny that ...; the question is whether a law is the right answer.”.
- 38 minWriting
Start the timer. Students write their own text; anyone stuck can use the plan in the toolkit. (280-330 words)
- 10 minPeer review
Students swap texts and fill in the peer-review sheet.
- 5 minWrap-up
Set the extra challenge as homework.
The task’s own teacher notes give extra ideas for the warm-up and focus.
Assessment rubric
| Criterion | 4 · Excellent | 3 · Good | 2 · Developing | 1 · Beginning | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Task and content | In-depth, persuasive, fully suited to the reader. | Strong; one idea could go further. | Adequate but surface-level. | Below the task. | |
| Organisation and coherence | Seamless flow; elegant, unobtrusive transitions. | Clear structure; transitions sometimes mechanical. | Structure present but uneven. | Weak organisation. | |
| Vocabulary and style | Precise, natural collocations; consistent style. | Wide range; a few unnatural phrases. | Memorised phrases and repetition. | Style does not fit the task. | |
| Grammar and accuracy | Complex structures, flexible and accurate. | Minor, occasional slips. | Errors in complex structures. | Errors strain the reader. | |
| Total | / 16 | ||||
Each criterion scores 1–4 (total 16). Use the task checklist below to tick what the student actually did.
Task checklist
- My position is clear in the first paragraph.
- I gave at least two arguments with evidence or experience.
- I stated the strongest opposing argument fairly before answering it.
- I ended with a concrete proposal.
Teacher comment
Peer-review sheet
Students swap texts and give each other feedback with this sheet.
Before you finish
Before you finish
- My position is clear in the first paragraph.
- I gave at least two arguments with evidence or experience.
- I stated the strongest opposing argument fairly before answering it.
- I ended with a concrete proposal.
Writadia · C2 · Formal letters
Assessment rubric: Letter to the Editor: Phones in the Classroom
| Criterion | 4 · Excellent | 3 · Good | 2 · Developing | 1 · Beginning | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Task and content | In-depth, persuasive, fully suited to the reader. | Strong; one idea could go further. | Adequate but surface-level. | Below the task. | |
| Organisation and coherence | Seamless flow; elegant, unobtrusive transitions. | Clear structure; transitions sometimes mechanical. | Structure present but uneven. | Weak organisation. | |
| Vocabulary and style | Precise, natural collocations; consistent style. | Wide range; a few unnatural phrases. | Memorised phrases and repetition. | Style does not fit the task. | |
| Grammar and accuracy | Complex structures, flexible and accurate. | Minor, occasional slips. | Errors in complex structures. | Errors strain the reader. | |
| Total | / 16 | ||||
Each criterion scores 1–4 (total 16). Use the task checklist below to tick what the student actually did.
Task checklist
- My position is clear in the first paragraph.
- I gave at least two arguments with evidence or experience.
- I stated the strongest opposing argument fairly before answering it.
- I ended with a concrete proposal.
Teacher comment
Writadia · C2 · Formal letters
Peer-review sheet: Letter to the Editor: Phones in the Classroom
WriterReviewer
Read your partner’s text carefully. Be kind and specific: say why, not just “good”.
Task checklist
| Yes | Partly | No | |
|---|---|---|---|
| My position is clear in the first paragraph. | |||
| I gave at least two arguments with evidence or experience. | |||
| I stated the strongest opposing argument fairly before answering it. | |||
| I ended with a concrete proposal. |
Questions
- Is the main point clear in the first paragraph? Write it in one sentence.
- Which sentence is the most convincing? Why?
- Is there any repetition or memorised phrasing? Underline it.
- Does the style suit the reader and purpose?
Two stars and a wish
★ Something I liked
★ Another thing I liked
→ One suggestion
Writadia · C2 · Formal letters
Lesson plan: Letter to the Editor: Phones in the Classroom
- 5 minWarm-up
Show the situation on the classroom screen and ask: “What would you write in this situation?” Take two or three quick answers.
- 10 minWord pool
Open “Word pool” on the classroom screen. Students make one sentence each with: blanket ban, remedy, at first hand, unenforceable, discretion.
- 12 minModel text
Reveal the model sentence by sentence in “Model text” mode. At each sentence ask: “What job does this sentence do?” Write these phrases on the board: “Your editorial of 3 November ("...") makes a case that is easier to share than to apply.”, “I write as a teacher / parent / student who has seen ... at first hand.”, “It would be dishonest to deny that ...; the question is whether a law is the right answer.”.
- 38 minWriting
Start the timer. Students write their own text; anyone stuck can use the plan in the toolkit. (280-330 words)
- 10 minPeer review
Students swap texts and fill in the peer-review sheet.
- 5 minWrap-up
Set the extra challenge as homework.
The task’s own teacher notes give extra ideas for the warm-up and focus.
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