This year, cell phone pockets have been reinvented into much a more extreme form, one that many high schoolers question on a daily basis. The implementation of cellphone lockers has been nearly unanimously despised by students and staff alike, as the monetary effort put into their introduction has been proven to be unnecessary. In the beginning of the school year, the Wauwatosa School District enforced a “no cellphone” policy that started off very strict, as students were forced to put their phones away first thing every day. As the year has progressed, diminished use of the lockers has rendered them useless. The District allegedly spent over $90,000 on plastic cell phone lockers, which, combined with the ineffectiveness of the lockers, has staff and students wondering if this money was well spent. Sophomore Molly Wakefiled touched on the subject, expressing, “The money could have gone somewhere more beneficial, like field trip funds or air conditioning, and I think that the school district didn’t put enough thought into the cell phone lockers.” The district ensured that this year will be different in relation to phone usage at school, but has there really been a change from previous years?

We are now in the month of January. In the beginning of the school year the cell phone lockers were meant to help students stay more organized and focused during the school day. But as of right now, the phone lockers lack enforcement by many teachers. “I don’t necessarily use the cellphone lockers anymore, but they do have a deterrent effect on the students to not use their phones,” said English teacher Mrs. Salerno. Many teachers have eased off the use of these cell phone lockers and simply inform their students to put their phones away and out of sight. “We agreed as a department to go with “out of sight, out of mind” instead of requiring the lockers,” said Psychology and US History Teacher Mrs. Dederich. If there is a need for the lockers, then they will use them. For instance, during a test or after misbehavior. Last year, high schools provided low-cost phone caddies that teachers used if their department chose to do so. After asking one of the English teachers at Tosa East for his opinion on whether the phone caddies and cell phone lockers have a similar effect, Mr. Piotrowski voiced, “Same impact.” Although not very useful, according to many teachers the new lockers are most effective during tests. Mrs. Dederich said, “I don’t require the use except on test days.” But during a regular work day, students don’t necessarily follow these rules, and some teachers don’t follow up with the use of the lockers. “The problem now is that kids are bringing out phones a lot and I am back in the same position as before,” said Mrs. Dederich. This demonstrates that the cell phone caddies are much cheaper and end up having the same effect as the plastic cell phone lockers.

Instead of spending over $90,000 on these lockers for our cell phones, the administration should be using that money towards more effective ways to improve the school, or even the district as a whole. The Wauwatosa School District is trying to clear out the use of cellphones in the classroom, but they do not seem to be taking into account that this is the 21st century, and cellphones are not going away anytime soon. Teachers should be able to enforce their own rules in their classrooms, such as telling their students to keep the cellphones out of sight and in their backpacks. But were the lockers the right purchase, considering the fact that many teachers don’t even see a need to use them? This is the question that stumps people throughout the school district. Cell phone policies within classrooms should be left up to teachers’ preferences and opinions. The district has already purchased these cell phone lockers, but I can speak on behalf of many students that there should have been an alternative, less expensive, and more effective way to enforce the “no cell phone” policy.