By Brianna Fernandez ’28
With the rise of technology in today’s society, schools are seeking ways to manage student phone use. One solution has been the implementation of phone cubbies, which are designated storage spaces for phones during class time. Derby High School started using them in Feb., 2025. The cubbies’ purpose is to minimize distractions and promote a more focused learning environment.
Students and staff have shared their opinions on phone cubbies. When asked if phone cubbies are positive or negative, Skylah Clarke ‘28 said, “It’s in the middle, it can be a positive thing to help get students focus, get work done, and have fewer distractions in school.” She also said, “A negative aspect is that some students do not follow the policy and keep doing what they want.” Phone cubbies have been associated with both potential benefits and drawbacks. Continuing the cubby policy will be important to ensure that students are consistent and follow the rules.
Spencer Butterworth, a Social Studies teacher at Derby High School, had clear thoughts about whether he has any trouble enforcing the phone policy, if teaching has become easier without students being allowed to use their phones, and if he has noticed any changes in students’ grades since getting the phone cubbies. Butterworth said, “I was one of the first classrooms last year to get the phone cubbies on a trial basis, so a lot of my classes and students are used to having the cubbies. I would say this year has been more of an issue with headphones and improper computer usage.” He said, “teaching has been absolutely better, students are more engaged in classroom discussions and more focused on getting their work done in an appropriate time period because they don’t have that constant distraction.” He has noticed, “as a whole class, students are performing better this year than previous years” with the phone cubbies in place. Butterworth’s experience with phone cubbies suggests a positive impact on student engagement and overall academic performance, despite some new challenges, such as the misuse of headphones and computers.
Kristin Silvestri, an English teacher at Derby High School, echoed Butterworth: “I think students are much more focused in class. It’s one less thing; it’s not the only thing that distracts students, but it’s one less thing that can distract students, and we’ve noticed the change in grades.” She has not had any trouble enforcing the phone cubby policy this year, which has made her job “definitely easier,” and said, “Last year was harder because we didn’t start at the beginning of the year. I was someone who started in the middle of the year, and I think that enforcing the rule mid-year is never good, never helpful, never effective.” When asked if Silvestri thinks students are more focused and participate more in class since having phone cubbies, her response was, “I think so, we still have room for growth. I think students are definitely more focused.” Phone cubbies have made a significant impact on how students pay attention and participate during classes. Silvestri’s experience shows that phone cubbies are effective for improving the learning environment.
Assistant Principal Ray Coplin said, “We heard very loud and clear that the difficulty that teachers were having was just fighting for the full attention from students, and the phones often were the biggest contributors.” He noted that phone cubbies have been successful for students following the rules. Even for students not following the rules, keeping their phones away has been successful. Coplin mentioned that even adults, while in staff meetings, struggle with phone temptation. He added, “I would recommend cubbies to other schools, they are a more bargain-friendly alternative to the yonder pouches, which are tens of thousands of dollars to implement across the entire school, but the cubbies give a little bit of independence to students and still allow them to maintain it through other areas or times of the day.” Ultimately, Coplin’s experience suggests that cubbies are a great investment, helping students concentrate, improving the learning environment and providing a cost-effective alternative to stricter phone control policies.
At the end of the day, the introduction of phone cubbies has reshaped the school’s environment in numerous ways. Overall, the cubbies affect how we learn and interact with fellow students each day. Whether people like or dislike the choice the school made with cubbies, it’s clear that they have made a big impact on school life. The decision to implement them is mostly positive, reducing distractions and engaging students more in the learning process.
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