by Taylor Polomarenko
Even though use of electronics is prohibited at Hudson High School, more than 73% of students admit to using their phones at some point during the school day. Whether they are on Snapchat, social media or texting their friends, a majority of students use their phone in two or more classes.
According to the student handbook, “inappropriate use of electronics distracts from learning and consequences occur for students who use their phone during the school day.” The handbook goes further to outline the consequences.
In the classroom, teachers can warn the students to put the phone away, take the device away, or give the phone to an administrator. Many teachers though have their own classroom policies for students to abide by.
Pam Porter, a freshman social studies teacher, finds that at least once a day she has to ask a student to put their phone away. In her classroom she gives the student a warning and then removes it for subsequent offences. “Phones are disruptive. Receiving texts, snapshots and being constantly connected,” says Porter, “distracts many students from the focus of the classroom.”
Some students though, don’t find their phones to be a distracting tool to their learning. “For me, my phone doesn’t take away from my learning,” says one junior. “I still do as well as most people in the class.”
Other teachers do not see the cell phones as a big issue. Brett King, one of the math teachers at Hudson High, asks at the beginning of the year for students to keep their phones away unless they need it for any emergency. This approach seems to work because to date, he has never taken a student’s phone.
Even though teachers and the school set rules for using phones during school, over half of the student body admits to using their phones throughout the day. According to a survey of 100 students, 25% of students use their phone in every block.
Students feel the need to be on their phones because “it helps them feel connected and entertained,” says one sophomore student. About 45% of the time, those texts come from parents, even though they know their kids are in school.
Mallory Masciarelli, another math teacher, finds that she had a student put their phone on her desk at least twice a week. “Outside of emergency/ family situations, I’m not sure why students feel the need to be on their phones all day,” says Masciarelli. “The people they are talking to are also in class or sitting across the room in the same class.”
Although inappropriate use of phones is subject for consequence, many teachers find a way to incorporate phones into learning. Sometimes they will recommend apps for students to study with or have them research certain words or topics, but this isn’t an everyday thing.
Most of the time, students do not use their phones for these reasons in class. Fifty-seven percent of students use their phones to text, 30% of students use social media websites and 13% of students use their phones for miscellaneous activities (games, Snapchat, etc.). The reason most students do not take “selfies” is because it becomes too obvious that they are on their phones.
King is one teacher who does not like the idea of incorporating phones into education. “If I try to incorporate the phone as a teaching tool,” says King, “there would be a population of students that would be too tempted to misuse the phone in a way other than my learning objective.”
So how are students still getting away with using their phones in class? Students have found ways to hide their phones from the view of teachers, which is why not all students get caught.
But even with the threat of consequences over using phones during school, most of the student body still uses their phones throughout the school day.
