Seven hours without your cell phone who would issue such a thing? Prairie High School did! The new school year Prairie introduced a new phone rule where phones cannot be used from bell to bell, due to the lack of student engagement.
COVID hurt not only Prairie but schools worldwide. COVID-19 we all got used to being on our phones to communicate and learn, the issue with the cell phones was never as bizarre as they were pre-COVID. Saying that, school districts had to take the initiative to bring back student engagement and learning.
There have been previous attempts by the school to reduce the usage of cell phones, which weren’t failures but were less effective than they would’ve assumed. We started with the red light green light paper, teachers could let students know when they were allowed to use their phones whether it was green meaning use it freely yellow meaning using it for educational, or red being you can not be on it at all. Many including staff forgot that procedure which began the usage of phones being abused and impacting education.
The new Bell to Bell No Cell rule is a rule indicating that phone usage is not allowed between the first bell of your class to the ending bell of that class. When leaving a class to use the bathroom teachers have designated spots to put phones away to prevent using them outside. The times when cell phones are permitted are either during lunch, passing periods, or granted permission.
What’s the consequence if a student were to get caught? Students are left with two warnings before the major referral they receive.
This rule has already changed the engagement in learning, “I see students they have their pencil in their hand they have their worksheet in front of them or their Chromebook,” Said the Principal of Prairie High School Mrs. Woehr. “I’ve heard more students helping other students with their work than I’ve ever heard before in classes.”
Although some Prairie students and staff have noticed some holes in this rule. It is not yet stabilized, the Prairie administrators are still working on it and will continue to work on it throughout this school year.
“I don’t think we’ve shared all of those details because we’re still working on them.” Said the Dean of Students, Mr. Fox.
