Lately, a lot of people at school have been talking about the rules students deal with every day, especially the bathroom pass and phone policy. Teachers keep saying they want students to be more responsible, and students feel like some of the rules are just not working the way they should.
One rule that students bring up a lot is the bathroom pass. Some people use it normally, but others take way too long or just wander around the halls, which ends up making teachers more strict with everyone.
“I think students could do a better job at respectfully using the bathroom pass. It would help teachers and other students who need to go to the bathroom,” senior Tyler Roche said.
The other major topic is phones. Teachers want phones put away in class to avoid distractions, but many students think phones are important for safety.
“I think students should be allowed to have their phones with them at all times for safety,” says sophomore Vincent Takawira.
The phone caddies seem to be getting stricter and stricter every year. This makes the high school seem like the middle school, which most students don’t agree with. Some students say that if something serious ever happened, they’d want their phones with them, not put away in the phone caddy.
“Coming into high school, I thought that the phone policies were gonna be more lenient than compared to middle school. But it feels similar because all my classes have phone caddies,” freshman Moiz Waqas said.
An issue teachers have with students is when they don’t think they are smart enough to do something. They try something once and give up.
“I don’t like it when students speak negatively about themselves. There is always room for growth, and even if we don’t know content in the moment, we can always work towards understanding,” said teacher Katie Welsch.
Other teachers share this same point of view and want their students to persevere through challenges and accomplish their goals.
Currently, the students and teachers are divided over the school’s rules and expectations. There are arguments for either side. Teachers and students alike want GHS to be a fair and safe space, but it is challenging to accommodate everyone’s needs.
