The Mycenaean

Cell phones are the keys to students everyday lives. Phones are attached to students practically twenty-four hours a day, which means they bring their phones into the classroom with them. As the first bell for class rings, some students are quite hesitant to put away their phones for learning.

These same students who usually pulled out their phone while class was in session, became distracted from learning. This exact process of phone usage has repeated for years, and now, for the 2018-2019 school year, Leesville is administering a new precaution to cut down phone usage during class.

In the coming weeks, Leesville expects to receive shipments of cell phone pouches for all student’s desks in all classrooms on campus. Students must place their phones inside the pouches during instructional time, unless their teacher tells them otherwise.

The announcement of pouches was made during the first day of classes on August 27, and there was an initial uproar of displeasure among the student body, with few positive reactions.

However, there are both advantages and disadvantages to the new cell phone policy.

Ethan Hunter, a junior at Leesville, further explains the benefits of cell phone pouches at Leesville:

“Though I was not too happy with the idea of cell phone pouches at first, but I do believe some good can come out of it.

Hunter continues to emphasize the benefits.

First off, students will have to pay attention in class. Due to this, I think grades in the school overall will improve. Also, with time away, students will also become less addicted to their phones since there will be a decrease in usage. This will help us stop texting all day and increase overall social interaction for learning inside of the classroom,”

The positive points emphasized included: overall grades in the school ascending, as well as students will be all but forced to pay attention in class. Both factors lead to greater and better lives for students, as they can apply what they learned to create a successful career path.

If phones were used during instructional time, students would not only have a hard time keeping up with the curriculum, but also suffer the possibility of repercussions for bad grades.

Taryn Baughman, a senior at Leesville, proposes a different and more popular opinion about cell phone pouches, in a negative context:

“I feel that the pouches are a complete waste of time and money. Yes, they would keep students off their phones and would make teachers not completely distracted towards them during class. However, they are completely unnecessary.”

Baughman also drives home the point of student decisions, rather than the county’s own decisions. Believing in students choices more than what the county wants to see, she continues; if students want to go on their phones during class and end up failing that is their choice and not the teachers. Most students are going to find this stupid and unreasonable for them because a lot follow the rules,”

Baughman highlights the concept of pouches becoming unnecessary due to students pulling out their phones during class being their own decision.

The impact of money becomes a big factor, as each pouch averages around around seven dollars a pop, as a pouch will appear on every students desk in every classroom in the main and murphy buildings. The estimated cost would be over $9000.

Some students argue that the amount of money used was extreme and over the top, as the money could go to other problems around the school.

Though opinions split through the announcement of cell phone pouches, it is no lie Leesville will not stay quiet about their feelings.