Teachers should not be allowed to take student property. Many students at school have had stories of having their phones taken by teachers and if they try to resist they may get in trouble for talking back.
Some teachers also have set up a phone rack where students are advised to put their phones up at the start of class and will be able to get them back at the end of it.
Students almost always dislike these rules. If a student doesn’t want to pay attention, should the teacher have the right to take their phones to ensure they do?
If anything it should be the student’s responsibility if they want to pay attention.
“If I don’t want to pay attention, that’s my business,” said senior Abdesammad Zerrouq.
However, maybe having your phone taken is a good thing.
“Last year 50 percent of the class failed, now only three,” said construction core teacher Yarbrough Williams. Many teachers also feel discouraged when teaching a class with every student on their phone.
Many teachers also say that phone use is reflected in a student’s grade. Some teachers believe students who use their phones for most of the class typically have worse grades and this is because they aren’t doing their work or paying attention.
Some students may also need their phones, possibly waiting for an important call or something health-related, like monitoring their blood sugar. Taking a student’s phone can hinder their ability to reply to such calls and watch their blood sugar, which may cause issues for them later.
Oftentimes, teachers don’t accept these excuses because students may be lying to simply keep their phones. This can also negatively affect students who do need their phones.
Teachers will explain that if their parents needed them they would call the school. Parents can be busy with work or other important tasks and may not have time to call the school to simply have their student check their phone.
Some teachers have decided to take the phones of students who are using them in class and put the phones in a “phone jail.” For repeated offenses, teachers have decided to hold the phone until a parent from home can come get it. This type of punishment affects the parents more than the students, and teachers shouldn’t be allowed to do this.
“I’m the one paying for [my phone], not you,” said senior Laniaya Glassgow. Teachers have no right to take student property when they are not the ones paying for it.
In conclusion, while teachers think taking phones helps students focus, it can interfere with important messages students might need to get. Is there a better way to keep class on track without taking students’ property?
