Your alarm just woke you up for another school day. The phone you were on just before you went to sleep is screaming your name! 

According to the article “30 Surprising Cell Phone Addiction Statistics for 2022”, 95% of U.S. teens have phones. 

This mass possession can make student usage of phones in school overwhelming for staff members. After the first couple weeks of school, this problem came to light. 

Though, most students do get away with being on their phone, because they resent not possessing it. This makes the hassle of controlling phones more difficult.

Social Studies teacher Brian Neel is frustrated with the number of students on their phones while he’s explaining classwork. 

Students who are not paying attention complain afterwards that they were distracted and now need him to repeat something. This is a repetitive cycle for phone-dependent students, and he is getting tired of it.

Frustrations like these lead some teachers to wish that confiscating phones was effective at Loy Norrix.

“I wouldn’t even start confiscating phones, I just think it would be too much.” said Neel. 

Everyday, students use their phones frequently in school to stay entertained through the load of school work. Students say they do this to fulfill the mental exhaustion they have from the burden of school work.

“I see peers on their phones all hour and their grades are rocky. They aren’t consistent in class and seem tired all the time,” said junior Chloe Hanks. “I feel like if there was a school week with no phones allowed, people would be more productive in a sufficient amount of time.”

However, Hanks thinks phones should be allowed in school, but with stricter rules enforced. 

In contrast, Neel believes phones should not be allowed in school because they are only used for social media and texting. Neel thinks more and more students are taking advantage of the lack of enforcement of the cell phone policy.

Freshman Madison Luchies also thinks phones are the main cause of decreased achievement in a student’s academic life. 

“I feel bad for those students, it’s almost like they can’t control themselves. After quarantine, this problem has really picked up,” Luchies said.

Most, if not all, students had some sort of technology to keep them sane during quarantine, and now they have grown a deep attachment to these devices.

According to the story “Has Covid-19 Made You Addicted to Your Phone?”, quarantine has sparked a conflict between students and their technology use. Students were on their electronics not thinking about the long term need for their devices they were developing. 

Freshman Madeline Chappa is already noticing these habits in her peers. She thinks that the way they use their phones is excessive, and it is going to be a recurring problem for them throughout their high school career and cause their grades to suffer.

“It’s honestly really bad how addicted we are to our phones,” said Chappa.  

It’s common to feel like school can be stressful, keeping up with grades can be hard, showing up, and attempting to give it your best effort all week is tiring. All in all, school is more important than your best friend’s new Instagram post.