As we all know, the teachers of Lakeland have been cracking down on phone use during class. It has become a much talked about subject within the student body.

Students are only allowed to use phones before school, after school, or during passing periods. Phones are not to be used without permission during class, cannot disrupt the class environment, or used to cheat.

According to the student handbook, students that are caught violating these phone rules will receive disciplinary action, “ including losing the privilege of bringing the device onto school property, detention, suspension, or expulsion. In addition, an administrator will confiscate the devices, which shall only be returned to the student’s parent(s)/guardian(s). Where appropriate, police authorities may be contacted. ”

Both sides of this can be argued. Most students want phones, while teachers don’t.

For an administrator’s point of view, I talked to Shannon LaFountaine about her opinion on the subject. She hopes to get all of the discipline done in the first couple of weeks of school and says that everything we do on our phones can be done on our chromebooks.

“It will be an adjustment and learning curve, but direct interaction within the classroom will come out of no phone,” Shannon said.

She makes good points, and not having phones makes sense to make classrooms more controlled.

For a student’s perspective on the topic, I talked to Michael Locke about his thoughts. He said, “Personally, I think it is a good thing because it keeps students focused on what is going on in class”.

Personally, I understand the extra effort to crack down on phones, but as a student, I want to be able to have my phone out in class. Throughout my high school career, I have frequently had my phone out in nearly every class, and still, I have never failed a class. For some students, it can be a distraction, but for others, including me, I can have my phone on my desk and casually use it while adequately learning.

For classes such as Journalism, we should be able to have phones to record interviews instead of carrying around Chromebooks and using the camera. Last year we used a recording app that worked great, but the new policies this year prohibit this method.

As many may know by now, teachers have a ton more say in things than students, so the rule will probably stay as it is currently throughout the year.