Pocketing distractions

Last spring, a new study hour rule was added to Fowle Hall and Tippetts Hall: the phone pocket policy. All ninth graders were required to place their phones in a pocket on their doors and keep the door open. Phones had to be in the pockets from the start until the end of the study hour, from 8 to 9 p.m. When students first heard the news, most complained about the new policy. 

The policy’s purpose is to help students concentrate fully on their work and be productive. Phone addiction is a common problem that students have experience throughout the world. The phone restriction shows that faculty notice, care about, and are seeking to address distractions that phones cause to students. 

Some academic work must be done outside of class time; however, students also need time for PGAs, dinner, and rest, consuming most of their time after school. Time for studying and working is limited, which is why study hours are necessary for most students. Phones encourage inefficient use of time during study hours, which is why faculty consider them a serious problem. 

As a ninth grader last year, I was not happy with the phone pocket policy. For forgetful people like me, remembering to place my phone in the pocket before study hours was a very common error that led to conflict between faculty members and me. It also felt unfair that only ninth graders were affected by the policy. 

Although I am a lower middler, no longer required to put my phone in a pocket, looking back I think about the policy. First of all, being able to finish without disturbance helped me concentrate throughout the hour and a half. Although phone use was prohibited, listening to music with Bluetooth AirPods (or any way that does not include physically interacting with a phone) was still allowed. Without phones, I wasn’t able to check notifications from Snapchat or Instagram; as a result, there was no need for me to wake up at 6 a.m. to finish the homework that I hadn’t been able to complete the previous night. There was time for processing while doing work, and I got more time for sleep

Phone pockets are not just an unfair, strict policy that exists solely to control students. Instead, they provide opportunities for more diverse ways of studying, a better chance of long-term concentration, and a pure hour and a half for improving academic performance and skills outside of class. I hope more students who are required to put their phones in phone pockets, especially those who have had the same opinion as mine, are able to reflect on their performance during study hours and how efficiently their time may be spent.