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Westerville North implements existing phone policy into their commitments

Phones vs. no phones: how I feel about the issue

   The commitment that initially caught mine and many other student’s eyes the most is the no phones in the classroom policy. This policy limits the use of personal electronic devices such as phones or earbuds to student’s study halls, lunches, or class transitions. If one doesn’t follow this policy, they run the risk of catching lunch detentions. 

   This sudden enforcement may come as somewhat of a shock to many students who may not have never really experienced this degree of electronic limitation within the classroom. In previous years, whether or not one could have an electronic out at all was largely up to the individual teacher. I personally view that to be the better route of dealing with electronics in school. 

   I do believe the intention behind the phone policy is positive. Its primary purpose is to bolster student engagement and to improve the learning environment. I believe it also seeks to teach self control. However, I believe it also raises the question, is micromanaging students as such an effective method of teaching character? I don’t think it is. 

   Previously, most classes I have taken were not terribly strict on electronics, but there was a mutual understanding that if I was on my phone and didn’t pay any attention to the lessons, then I would not do well in the class. The blame would fall on me. I feel that through this new system, the way of learning self control through personal decisions is devalued. 

   I recall most clearly from my first day as a freshman, the teacher claiming we were all practically young adults and that we would be treated as such if we could act like ones. That was one of the first couple of big impressions I got from high school. Adding this micromanaging could diminish the value of greater personal freedom in education that high school provides and, for some, cause high school to feel more like a continuation of elementary and middle school rules. Also, it could make them feel disconnected from the school as it could conflict with their ability as 16, 17, and 18 year olds to make smart personal decisions. 

   In my experience, if an individual truly does not care about something, there really is not anything you can do to convince them to reason with or willingly comply with you. I do not think it is worth it to remove a sense of freedom from every student because the few who simply do not care.