It’s been a rough day.
Two tests, one quiz – a near-maxed out major assignment load.
He just wishes he could wind down, crash and sink into a lounge chair.
Maybe even listen to music. He pops one AirPod in an ear, then another.
Then, then a familiar hand sets down onto his shoulder, accompanied by blooming disappointment.
Although the school’s earbuds ban has been spelled out in Lions’ Tracks for years, some haven’t really bothered to acknowledge the rule. However, with the sudden uptick in student AirPod usage on campus, Assistant Head of Upper School Jason Leneau explicitly reinforced the policy to students during an assembly.
“It’s not a new rule,” Leneau said. “(Using your earbuds) is the same thing as using your phone. They should be used for academic purposes only.”
In fact, earbuds are allowed to be used on campus if students seek proper permission first. As someone who carries a set of AirPods everywhere he goes, Leneau believes that the devices do bring benefits to students.
“I understand the concept of ‘I want to study, and I have noise-canceling headphones,’” Leneau said. “I don’t use (my AirPods) often, but I do use them when I need to drown out the background noise.”
The danger of using earbuds lies in the very isolation that completely “plugging in” brings. For example, teachers are effectively unable to signal a student using noise-canceling headphones to do something verbally.
“When you’re using noise-canceling earbuds, you’re disconnected from what’s going on,” Leneau said. “If we had a fire drill or an urgency of some sort, I think using earbuds could hinder (a student’s) response time.”
The temptation to switch from merely listening to music to something unrelated to academics was also a major concern for Leneau. In particular, the “phone safe zones” were typically hot spots of commotion simply due to the concentration of students browsing social media or playing video games. This noise occasionally interrupts nearby classes.
“If I get on my device in those safe areas, and I find something entertaining, I may have a reaction,” Leneau said. “What that does is draw a crowd. As that crowd gets louder, those academic spaces start disrupting activity in surrounding areas.”
As earbuds continue to be used around campus, students just have to be mindful of the purpose that they’re using them for and seeking adult permission.
“I think the process should be, ‘hey, do you mind if I put my headphones on or use my AirPods?’” Leneau said. “It’s the polite and right thing to do.”
