Op-Ed: Earbuds Should be Allowed in Hallways

If you are a student, teacher, or administrator at Carter High School, then you have probably been informed of the ludicrous earbud and headphone ban in hallways during class changes. This rule was announced when everyone in the school went into the auditorium for the beginning of the year lecture on school rules and expectations. During the lecture, students were told that the staff believed that we became oblivious to the chatter if we had our earbuds or headphones on, so it was a recurring struggle for teachers and other staff to get the attention of a student when they needed to talk to them if they were using their earbuds. However, if a teacher wants to talk to a student they can just touch the student’s shoulder to get their attention. Another example given in the auditorium was if there was an announcement, then students with their earbuds in would not know what was being said because they were preoccupied with listening to their music.

If there is an event or deadline that requires attention, then students will most likely see them on the TVs that are all around the school or they can ask their friends. Word travels quickly throughout this school because we have so many ways of communicating upcoming events or deadlines for ordering items like coupon books and class rings. An important point that was made during the lecture was that if students have earbuds in and something happens like a fire then those students will not know what is happening and be confused, which may end up with them freaking out and causing a panic in the hallway. We all have eyes and noses, so if something smells like it’s burning, and we see flames, we’ll know that something is on fire. However, fires are not common at Carter High School. 

Carter High is an engaging school, so there is a lot of conversation happening between most students in the hallways, but some students do prefer to put their earbuds in and turn their music on while they traverse the hallways to their next class.Earbuds should be allowed in the hallways because it keeps noisy students from interrupting others, it will help some of us to focus on getting where we need to be and will help block out the stressful vibes in the hallways.