With August here, students are returning to school to continue their studies. ACTs, SATs, and assignments occupy their minds. Imagine walking into school and having your phone taken because it is visible in your pocket. What has changed?
Recently, a state law prohibiting the use of cell phones during public school hours was approved and went into effect at the start of the school year. Governor Jeff Landry believes this new law is vital in limiting distractions and improving student well-being. But what does this mean for students? Will banning cell phones at school really benefit our safety and education?
Cell phones must be “off and out of sight,” or students will suffer the consequences listed in the student handbook. This law cuts communication between students and parents while also ending emergency contact accessibility.
Students must go to the office to call their parents, which can make some feel uncomfortable. Granted this has always been the rule even before the ban was released. And what about more serious situations, like the life-threatening ones? What if a student had a medical emergency during school? Wouldn’t it benefit them to have a method of reaching 911 on their own?
Just last week, a student at Dutchtown Middle School passed away after a medical emergency that happened during gym class. Could this death and others similar in nature have been prevented if a student in the room had the ability to call emergency services? A cell phone isn’t just a device that distracts; it can be used to ensure safety.
If Governor Landry really wants to improve student wellbeing, his focus shouldn’t be on cell phones. I believe there are more pressing issues at hand that affect the livelihood and security of students, like the lack of gun regulation.
In the average year, 1,153 people die and 3,345 are injured by guns in Louisiana. As of 2024, 28.2 per every 100,000 Louisiana residents lose their lives as a repercussion of gun violence. Those statistics are terrifying.
And it’s not just happening in downtown Baton Rouge or New Orleans. It’s happening here, in our hometown. According to WAFB 9, on August 10, a man and woman were shot and injured at a pool in an area between Old Scenic Highway and Meadow Hill Avenue (a neighborhood just across the street from Fennwood Hills Country Club).
This problem is seeping its way into our community. Trudging its way closer and closer to our schools. If the governor and state legislature truly cared about protecting students and improving the learning environment in our schools, they would take steps to regulate guns.
Yet time and time again, they choose to do the opposite. In February 2024, a Louisiana bill was passed that allowed eligible residents 18 and older to carry a concealed handgun without a permit or training. Even though this law protects individuals’ second amendment Right to Bear Arms, it opens the door to dangers for many people living under the law.
If Louisiana were to tighten gun regulations, it would make the state a safer place for everyone. According to World Population Review, California is the state with the strictest gun laws with regulations of who can purchase a gun and what kinds of firearms can be carried. Unsurprisingly, they have the seventh-lowest rate of deaths by gun violence in the country. In comparison, Louisiana has some of the loosest gun regulations and is ranked second in the country for highest gun death rate.
If the Louisiana government cares about improving the livelihood of students, they will enact gun regulation. Just like students must have a signed medical physical before they can participate in sports, people who carry guns should have to meet qualifications too. For example, being eligible to own a gun could require individuals to be 21 years of age or older, along with being evaluated by a psychiatrist to see if the person is competent and safe to be trusted with carrying a gun.
Will Louisiana students ever be able to live in a state that doesn’t rank in the top two of deaths by gun violence? I guess we’ll never know since Louisiana seems to be more concerned about student use of cell phones than the deaths by gun violence.
Louisiana to ban cell phone usage in school; some teachers question enforcement (fox8live.com)
U.S. gun violence rate by state 2024 | Statista
Why Schools Are Racing to Ban Student Phones – The New York Times (nytimes.com)
Gun-Violence-in-Louisiana-2024-05.pdf (everystat.org)
Strictest Gun Laws by State 2024 (worldpopulationreview.com)
Dutchtown Middle student dies from medical emergency (msn.com)
Zachary police investigate shooting that left 2 people injured (msn.com)