Andy Kimball
Opinion Columnist
Albert Ei
nstein once said, “I fear the day technology will surpass our human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots.”
Einstein was talking about how once people are engulfed in their different types of technology (cell phones, laptops, tablets, IPod, etc.) that there will not be any human interaction ,and then humans would lose the knowledge gained from human interaction.
It is extreme to think this is the case for students at the high school today, but cell phones and technology are a distraction to students during class and cell phones are something that hurts student’s learning, and therefore something the school district must change.
A study from the Health and Human Services department surveyed with over 500 students at their University in Kent, OH. This study found that students who used their phones more often and students who used their phones during class had lower grades.
Other findings suggested students who used their phones more often had higher anxiety and didn’t find as much happiness in life.
A possible solution is already being used in some classes and, if put in place, would help raise productivity and attentiveness.
In some classrooms baskets are provided in which phones are put during class to keep students’ minds on the class and not on their phones. Katie Guymon, English teacher, has a “phone basket” that references the Einstein quote about technology surpassing human interaction by having a piece of paper read “score one for humanity” on the front.
The school district’s mission statement is “academic and personal success for every student,” and if there’s anything that would hurt that success, like the use of phones during class, then it’s the districts job to “score one for humanity” and find a solution.
