As one walks into class at Pascack Hills, the bright blue pouches with the white numbers hanging on the whiteboard are filled with phones, with no number unchecked.  Walk in, put your phone in a hanging pouch, then take a seat: this is the new normal for all Hills students due to the phone policy.

Phones are a distraction from students’ realities. Students are likely to scroll on TikTok or use any app, entertainment or not, throughout their day. Studies show that spending hours upon hours on their phones can cause students social stress. Being on their phones all the time by themselves can lead to teens feeling depressed or lonely. Statistically, 41 percent of teens with extremely high social media usage have poor mental health.

Hills established a new phone policy to pull students away from screens and focus more on learning; being in the moment with their classmates around them. Some students believe there is no difference between this year and last year with the phones.

Most students say their teachers told them to just keep their phones in their backpacks. Some teachers have even complained about students forgetting their phones in class, showing that this new phone policy has some downsides.

Freshman Sasha Kryagin explained to her thoughts on phone holders as a new student, in a new school, experiencing this new policy

“I don’t like that the school doesn’t trust us to use our phones, and I understand why the phone holders are in place. But I don’t like them,”  she said.

While the point of freedom and choice is a strong case, in my opinion, phone holders are a fantastic establishment. They put students’ phones away so that there is nothing holding them back from socializing and focusing. Phone holders let students take a break from technology as they can focus more on the lesson and interact with their classmates. It is also a healthy break because on weekends most students choose to spend their entire day hooked on technology.

Phones are a major distraction, making it hard for students to concentrate on what is being taught in class. Their attention can turn to video games or texting with friends. As a result, this would deeply affect their overall grade and performance in class. Not paying attention can lead to missing out on a lesson and being confused if there is a test or exam. All because of this small screen’s absence, a major obstacle in learning has been avoided.

Whether or not students agree with the new hallway phone monitoring situation is another story. For now, in-class phone pouches certainly serve a strong purpose!

Sources: 

https://www.apa.org/monitor/2024/04/teen-social-use-mental-health