As of the 2016-17 school year, students are not allowed to listen to music through headphones at all. If headphones are seen, students will be written up. This is to prevent students from being distracted from their music.

Students should be allowed to listen to headphones during independent work, in the hallway, and at lunch. Some students have anxiety and need to listen to music to calm down. Some students need music when doing classwork so they can solely pay attention to their work.

According to recent studies by Stanford Medicine, students do better focusing while listening to music and it engages the brain over a period of time. As a highschooler myself, I can vouch for this. I pay more attention to my work when I am closed off with my music. When I do not have music, I am compelled to talk to the people around me.

I know some people will say that students will just get on their phone with the excuse of “I’m just changing the song.” If students don’t show enough responsibility to listen to music, the privilege will be taken away. A teacher can determine who and who doesn’t deserve the right by how a student’s grade is and how well they participate in class. The rules may vary by classroom.

I propose that if students have a C or higher, and do very well in class, the student should be allowed to listen to music with teacher approval. Each teacher could have their own set of rules and grade averages they want for their student to be allowed to use their headphones.