By Kody Oyama
Staff Writer Lakeridge Junior High School has recently announced the allowance of phones at lunch. This is not permanent yet because the staff would like to see how it goes for a number of weeks, but if it weren’t for the three students that made a petition for it, it wouldn’t have been possible at all. For a while, many students have wanted to be able to have their phones at lunch, but three students took it further by printing out their own petition and getting over 200 students to sign it. The staff was later informed and took the rule into consideration. After a month or two, the staff of Lakeridge Junior High told students that cell phones would be allowed at lunch and during break for three weeks, and if it goes well, the policy could become permanent. This rule doesn’t allow students to use phones during class, but encourages use during lunch and break only. Also, students are allowed to carry their cell phones with them to class, as long as they are powered off and tucked away. When students were told about this, they were extremely excited to try it out. Most teachers and students believe that allowing phones at lunch has been going well, but the staff will have to keep watching, and see if there are problems because of it. “It is great when they are used appropriately, but the problem comes when they are not,” explains Mr. Zurcher. A lot of the teachers agree with this, because if students misuse them, it can become a problem. Mr. Kelly, on the other hand, really likes the policy, but wishes that students were much more responsible with them. “My advisory class has 24 students, and I confiscated 15 phones, so this has to improve,” he says. It is clear that there are some problems with this policy, but if students follow the rules, it can display that students are ready for the responsibility. “I don’t want them to be taken away, but if we are using them incorrectly, they will be”, says Kayla Krueger, a 7th grader. Will students respect the rules? If they can do that, the policy will become permanent, an event most students desire. |
LJHSLakeridge Junior High School is an award-winning academic institution located in Lake Oswego, Oregon. Archives |