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A new cell phone policy has been implemented this school year. Students will not be able to have phones out during instructional period and they must be turned off and in their bag. If teachers see a phone out in class without permission they will immediately collect it and turn them into the office.
On the 1st offense of violating the new phone policy, students will have the phone taken up and returned to the student at the end of the day. The 2nd and 3rd offenses will result in an additional $15 fine. The 4th offense is a $15 fine, the device will be returned to parent/guardian at the end of the day and the student will serve 2 days of ISS.
“[Cell phone use] was becoming a distraction in the classroom,” principal Joey McQueen said. “More students were more worried about their phone notifications and playing games, instead of paying attention to their teacher.”
The decision to ban phones during instruction came directly from LHS administration. Administrators researched what other schools around the state were doing and then finalized the new technology policy this year.
“I am as guilty as anyone,” McQueen said. “But I know when to put my phone down when someone is speaking.”
A no phones policy has already been in effect at the middle school. This year’s freshmen coming from the middle school are already familiar with a no-phones policy.
“I don’t think freshmen should be upset with the ban,” McQueen said. “They should be used to the policy and that should make it easier for them to adhere to it.”
Another issue that was prevalent with phone usage in the past is the rising use of AI programs to cheat on assignments with programs like ChatGPT, Photomath, and MathWay.
“In today’s society, not just students, we’ve used AI to make our lives easier,” McQueen said. “But in the past, students had to show work for their math programs.”
Fine money will go towards the general activity fund. No money has been collected yet.
“There were some phones taken up so far,” assistant principal Ryan Race said. “And we hope that all students are learning the new policy.”
While there is no phone policy restricting teachers from their phones, they are encouraged not to use their phones during instructional times as well.
“We only have 45 instructional minutes each period,” Race said. “We must take advantage of every second to optimize the educational opportunities of our students.”
In the past, some teachers used phone time as a reward for finishing classwork. With the new policy in effect, that is no longer allowed to be a reward.
Senior Evan Altum said not using his phone in class has made him more unfocused and distracted.
“When we had phones in the past, I used my phone to listen to music and block out the loudness of the classroom,” Altum said.
Altum finds the phone ban too extreme.
“They always say we’re adults and they’re going to treat us like adults,” he said. “Then they turn their back and implement a rule from the middle school and treat us like children. They should let us figure out things on our own. In college the professor isn’t going to take your phone up. It’s on us to have our own sense of responsibility.”
