The Middle-School Phone Policy: Is It Doing More Harm Than Good?

At the beginning of the school year, the Student Affairs team announced the new policy concerning middle school students keeping their phones in their lockers throughout the day. Under the new policy, middle school students are required to hand in their devices, including cell phones, and smartwatches, when they enter the building. This means that middle school students can no longer use their phones during lunch, or after-school club hours. Michael Keaney, the Director of Student Affairs, said, “Students are forced to socialize, hopefully in a good way.”

The policy was started due to a recommendation by the U.S. Surgeon General, who provides the most relevant scientific research to improve the health of Americans. In December of 2021, the Surgeon General released an advisory against the usage of phones, with a focus on social media. In May of 2023, the Surgeon General released another advisory, recommending parents to limit phone use, and urging schools to do the same. He reported that heightened social media use is connected to a rise in mental health issues across the country.

Instead of allowing students to keep their phones in their lockers, Student Affairs chose to keep all smart devices in a locker on the first floor, which only staff can open. This is mainly to keep the policy organized. It also helps make sure kids are not using their phones during passing periods.

Now, during lunch, students can play various board games, in addition to foosball and table tennis. Students now socialize differently, connecting over board games instead of video games.

Often, kids make friends due to a shared interest in something, whether that something is a sport, a favorite book, or even a video game. The video game you choose to play is simply another way to express your interests, and so can help you make friends, and keep them. Over 89% of teens reported to the Pew Research Center that they play games with friends they know in real life, meaning that video games could be an essential part of keeping friendships intact. School is not just for academic learning, it also should encompass social development, and making and keeping friends is part of that. While this may not be ideal, phones can help kids be engaged in their friendships, even after school.The board games are a fun alternative, but few students live close enough to each other to play board games after school, so phones can help kids connect long distances. The ping pong and foosball tables are also a fun alternative to phones, but as Thor Walder, a 7th grader, reports, kids “just watch their friends play [ping pong]” and that “there's no social interaction whatsoever.”

While many people claim that video games and social media are distractions, they are no more of a distraction than sports or books, and yet adults are more willing to praise kids who get distracted by books or sports. Doing anything other than schoolwork is a distraction, we are just more likely to blame phones. Tyler Donnelly, a student in the eighth grade reports, “It does not change how I focus in class.” High school students are allowed to keep their phones in their locker, and one 10th grader reported that he does not nd his phone distracting. He says “I have a lot to work on, and I mostly have it in my locker.” There are hundreds of other possible distractions in life, so why do phones get all the blame?

Phone usage has changed rapidly over the years. At this point, phones are an integral part of daily life. Along with teaching academics, and social-emotional skills, schools are tasked with preparing you for the outside world. Taking away devices shelters students from outside. It doesn't teach. Schools should teach us how to use our phones in a safe and controlled manner, better to prepare students for society outside of school. Teaching students cybersecurity tips such as strong passwords, safe websites, and processes for not sharing personal information, is a way of ensuring students know what to do with the freedom that comes with a mobile phone. The school has a duty to expose us safely to the dangers of the world. If kids aren't mature enough, then it's the school's duty to make them mature enough. The school is supposed to help students grow, not to get rid of what kids can't handle.

Although the phone policy has overall been a success, it could have detrimental effects on students. The policy has made dismissal time much less organized because, as Thor Walder says, “everyone is now shoving their way to the front of the line.” It may have helped students interact with each other face to face but will slow down students’ ability to use their phones in a way that helps their quality of life. The ability to control your phone is important, but we're not going to learn that if we don't have the opportunity to. By forcefully taking away our devices, we can't learn, because there's no room for mistakes. If Student Aairs wants to teach us how to safely use our devices, they need to teach, not just punish. Phones are now an integral part of life, and it’s time to stop trying to go back.