Nick Kuentz, Opinions & Editorials Reporter
For many new students, switching to a new school means leaving all your friends. It can also mean getting used to new students, teachers, schedules, rules, and an overall new routine. In addition to these things, students new to Trinity Christian Academy have to get used to a very new rule – phone lockers. The phone lockers are a somewhat new addition to TCA, being introduced during the 25/26 school year to keep students on task and off their phones during class.
Our school introduced this phone ban even before the state of Texas banned phones in public schools, so you can say TCA is ahead of the game. TCA was also interviewed on CBS News Texas about how hard it is to get the attention of students and how Trinity Christian Academy is working to get students’ attention back to learning instead of spending time on social media. A student here at TCA was quoted saying, “I had a habit back in the day where I was just constantly like every day after class, grab my pocket, check my phone, and then like scroll and look at everything.” This student highlights how every day after class she would always check her phone just to see what was happening outside of school. Later, she said this caused a very chaotic environment and led to her getting distracted from what was going on in school. TCA said in the interview with CBS that it is part of a nationwide movement trying to get students back into learning and not on their phones.
How does this actually work? In the mornings, when students enter the school, they visit the phone lockers and put their phones into their dedicated spots, where they are locked up and left for the rest of the day. Students will get them at the end of the day right before they go home. May of the students appreciate this end-of-the-day craze to grab their phones because it opens up another opportunity for students to talk in person about their day and get to know the new kids or kids they haven’t talked to in a while.
While talking to the new students at TCA, they all shared two very similar opinions: the phone boxes help them focus and have real, personal connections with their teachers and classmates. One student who has benefited from this new rule is Paxton Bone. He said, “At my old school, I had a Chromebook, but here I have my iPad which is good because I can look at the notifications, but not get as distracted and then continue working.” Paxton also explained that he enjoys getting to have more in-depth conversations and real interactions with the people around him because there is less technology to distract everyone. Additionally, when he was asked about a possible concern with the phone boxes, he mentioned that, in the case of a fire he “wouldn’t be able to call [his] mom.” However, this isn’t a concern for TCA; the school has emergency procedures in place to keep students safe and accounted for in any emergency situation.
Overall, the phone boxes are a huge benefit to the school, causing a better learning environment and experience overall. TCA and the new students both benefit from this new rule because it not only makes a better learning environment, but also a great social environment at the school as well.
