This year at NAI a new initiative was started to keep students off of their phones in class. Every student has to put their phone in a holder during every class period. This was implemented to stop kids from being distracted by their phone while they are supposed to be learning.
The goal of this was to increase discipline in classrooms, reduce distractions, reduce cheating, and increase student engagement. Students have a better time focusing when they don’t have a buzzing phone next to them. By having the phones in the holders, students are more likely to pay attention and participate more.
Even though it was probable that there would be loopholes around cheating, the phone policy has proven to be successful. Student engagement has gone up, since kids are no longer distracted by their phones in class. According to Dr. Hibner,“There has been a significant increase in student engagement in the classroom”
North Allegheny wasn’t the only school district to implement a policy on phones. Other districts have implemented similar policies near NA with the same goals in mind.
Some students find the phone unnecessary or inconvenient. “I don’t despise it but I feel like it’s a tad unnecessary,” says freshman, Avery Sechler. However, students have shared that they understand why it was implemented. Teachers wanted them to focus more in class and not be distracted on their phones.
According to freshman Elena Xiao, “I understand the decision to implement a phone rule because it prioritizes fully focused learning in the classrooms in theory, but it’s definitely inconvenient in practice.”
The practice of banning cell phones in schools is not new; in fact, schools in France and other parts of the world have followed along with this practice. The French President, Emmanuel Macron, described the overexposure of phones having a detrimental effect on children’s development and growth.
The proposed plan is that children can receive a phone at the age of 11, however they won’t have access to the internet until they are 14. Once they turn 15, they are then allowed access to social media.
Part of the reason this plan was introduced in France and at North Allegheny was the psychological effects that phones have on teenagers. Many studies have shown correlations between large amounts of social media usage and depression and anxiety in teenagers. Since social media platforms are designed for you to get addicted, it’s not easy to cut down your usage of it.
