Disconnected: The new SMSD phone policy is excessive and poses unnecessary and additional problems

After suffering a year of constantly having my phone locked in my locker at Indian Hills due to their phone ban? I didn’t think I would ever have to deal with a phone ban again, especially in high school.

Ever since SM East introduced the new phone ban on Feb. 3, school has changed. In middle school, I’d get my phone taken in the hallways for not having it stashed in my locker and all I could think was “I can’t wait for high school.” Now there’s seemingly no difference between the two. 

I thought high school meant being considered responsible and mature enough to make my own decisions. Instead, the phone ban brings me back to seventh grade with no freedom and teachers regulating my every move.

Not only are phones banned, but so are headphones. Music helps me and countless other students focus on their work, avoid distractions in the background and be more productive. According to the National Library of Medicine, listening to music can spike creativity. Now, I can’t listen to Tame Impala with my AirPods to help me focus on my work. 

Students should be able to have their phones during independent work time at the bare minimum. Even after finishing my work, I can’t get on my phone. I just have to sit there and stare at the wall. 

Additionally, all the Google Chrome extension games were recently banned as they can distract students in younger grades, but high schoolers should have the maturity to control what they can do on their computers. With these bans, I can’t take a brain break after finishing my assignments in class. Instead, I’ve been spending all my free time on the few unblocked online shopping sites websites and Pinterest. 

And the worst part of the phone ban is that it applies to seminar.

I always put my headphones on and try to get as much work done as possible, but without them, I feel like I can’t do anything productive. I feel like I’m trapped in silence, forced to do work.  When I have no homework, I try to leave school because I’m just sitting there wasting time.

Only being allowed to contact our parents through the school phone due to the policy isn’t fair, and poses a safety risk. The amount of school threats we get is absurd and now we don’t have our phones to communicate with anyone about what’s happening during the school day.  

The punishment for getting caught being on our phones is a two-hour detention after school on Friday, which is too harsh. You get three warnings until this punishment but still, only three. 

The SMSD administration should’ve waited until next year to enact this new policy. This big change in the middle of the school year is making all students change their routines, especially seniors since they’ve gone three and a half years without the ban. I already have a routine of getting my work done and then getting on my phone, and now I get my work done and just sit there. 

 The district must realize the rules are excessive and impractical. I understand why they made the rule, but they haven’t considered all the little factors they are taking away.

Yes, phones can be distracting during instructional time, but students should have freedom during work time. High school students are capable of making their own decisions on when they want to do their homework and how they want to schedule their time. If they’re not they will deal with the consequences themselves like any other adult. 

If the district was truly concerned about our futures and how we’re going to operate in society, they wouldn’t enact a policy that takes us a step back in our educational journey into adulthood.