After years of phones being a common sight in classrooms, Creek starts the year with a new policy that restricts the use of personal technology in classrooms during instructional time. This policy was aimed to fit Creek’s standards for everyone.
“We’re just trying to create something that we think is reasonable and doable for our students and our staff, that we think fits our school,“ Assistant principal Kevin Uhlig said.
All personal technology is only allowed when outside of classrooms or on an off period. When in class it must be put in a designated area that the teacher prefers, whether that’s in a phone caddie or backpacks.
`Spanish Teacher Kathryn Hester prefers her students to put phone in caddies and believes that it has been going well, in fact better than any years before.
“It makes it more equitable for all the students and the teachers, because the kids are less distracted,” Hester said, “I’m just really giving kudos to creek for sticking by this policy.”
Throughout the school there’s a variety of feelings on the new policy between students and staff. Senior Tate Haverland feels the new policy is beneficial and has been a slight adjustment, she hopes it will be the policy that stays in place.
“ I feel like it’s good to have, but I don’t think it should go any further,” Haverland said.
On the other hand there are students who find this policy unneeded. Sophomore Pedro Torolho says that he is upset with constantly getting marked when he forgets to put his phone in the caddie. He also feels that a majority of students get their work done, and there’s no need to not have access to his phone.
“I don’t like it at all, I think we should be allowed to have our phones on us,” Torolho said.
When implementing the new policy Creek took into consideration all the different feelings. They wanted fairness and for the students to still have the ability to use their phones in school, just not during learning time.
“We’re still recognizing that it’s okay for students to have them during passing periods, off periods, things like that,” Uhlig said.
They hope that all students will comply, and when they don’t bear the fact states that there will be punishments per violation. Creek has high hopes for this, and if it ultimately doesn’t go well there’s a possibility of moving further.
“If students don’t comply, and it becomes a really big issue, then ultimately we might have to go to something extreme,” Uhlig said.
