ID Badges: Necessary or Nuisance?
Carmichael Rogers
Five Star Journal
When I first heard ID badges were going to be heavily enforced this school year, I thought, “Oh, this again, this’ll surely work and not end up gone in a month.” Sadly, my sarcasm is not omnipotent. Last year, the school “notoriously” mandated ID badges. Nobody really took it seriously, and everybody forgot about it, including the school. I do not see the same thing happening this year. Now, the ID badge rules are heavily enforced and made for conformity.
ID badges must be bound to the neck by a lanyard, with no other option. This limits self-expression and alienates people with physical and sensory issues, for whom it is uncomfortable and actively distracting from schoolwork. My mother, who works at Heritage University, has more reasonable rules. She has to wear an ID badge, but it can be worn by the neck, clipped on, or bound by a belt loop as long as it is visible. What Eisenhower is doing right now isn’t keeping outsiders out; it is simply conformity for the sake of conformity. It is telling people what they have to do and exactly how. As mentioned later, that is in opposition to what education means.
Furthermore, considering we are in a Title One district, where most students do not have enough money to pay for lunch, it is entirely ignorant to force kids to pay a fee for an ID badge. I understand paying for things students do not have to engage in, but for something forced? That is wrong. Somebody could easily rack up a hefty fine from ID badges, possibly preventing them from graduating just because they forgot to bring their ID.
Then, we have the hallway pass, where students are put into a digital system and given a set time of eight minutes to use the bathroom. That is authoritarian. We are teenagers, some of us adults, we know how long is too long in the bathroom. Isn’t the entire point of education to teach people how to be free and responsible for themselves? It doesn't feel like that, being forced into tight constraints. It’s odd that students are extrinsically motivated to not go to the bathroom. This is why people go during passing periods. They feel pressured during class, and the bathroom pass system adds to that. As a result, students are told they are horrible for being late to class because they listen to their bodies and are scared to ask to go to the bathroom. That is authoritarianism at its finest; that is conformity for the sake of it, and it needs to stop!
Annaka Yockey
Five Star Journal
Every time you get to class, you probably get a stern talking-to if you don’t have a lanyard with a plastic card on it. What is that plastic card, you might ask… an ID. This simple plastic card has been causing strong opinions recently. How could an ID card cause so much debate? When you think of it, it’s just a 2-inch by 3-inch plastic card. But to most people, this isn’t the case. IDs are a great way to show participation in school and have many other benefits as well.
IDs have been implemented into our uniforms. If you don’t have it on you, you are told to get it on. Some classes don’t even let you enter the class unless you have your ID. Some might ask, “Isn’t this excessive?” Well, this ID shouldn’t cause any problems. IDs won’t affect your outfit or take that long to get on. They’re just simple procedures regulated to keep efficiency. The counterpoint will argue that it’s hard to remember to put on or the lanyard gets caught on things. But a lanyard is just like any type of accessory in your wardrobe. I mean, we aren’t debating about taking hats off in school, are we? So why would your lanyard be different? If you, by chance, hate the lanyard so much, then you can opt for a badge clip or a badge reel (the ones that extend. Teachers just ask that they’re visible.
Remember when we had to hold dirty vests as bathroom passes? Yeah, well, now we don’t have to, thanks to this new ID policy. Say goodbye to the vest and hello to the ID’s. In almost every class last year the vests were never washed. Think about everyone who goes to the bathroom and all the places it has been, yuck! People would put them in the sink, get them all wet, and then bring them back into the classroom for the next person to go to the bathroom. If you don’t like the IDs, then you have to accept that you like holding a dirty vest rather than a lanyard. However, with the new system of having a hallway pass scanning your ID, it will be even harder to go anywhere without it.
IDs are simple; you just have to wear them. You don’t have to make such a big fuss about it when it’s just simple to put it on. Don’t think you're cool because you're not wearing your lanyard. Just wear it! For students, ID cards are a better alternative to dirty bathroom passes, and for teachers, they're better for keeping track of the students. The truth of this matter is ID badges are here to stay whether or not you agree.
