Lockers are obsolete by June Peers
Last year, lockers were not given to students due to Covid safety concerns. But as Covid restrictions are starting to be lifted, the school is slowly going back to normal, starting with issuing lockers.
However, many students question why one would need lockers in the first place. I wondered the same thing when I saw on my schedule that I was being given a locker. I thought to myself, “When am I ever going to use this locker?”
With so much of our coursework and textbooks online now, it seems lockers have become outdated and obsolete.
“In the past, lockers were used by many students, but in more recent years, they have become a vestigial part of Granada’s campus,” junior Edgar Flores Melendez said.
Even if a student wanted to use a locker, they are not easily accessible due to our large campus. Students have classes all across campus, so the idea of having to walk to the opposite side of school simply just to use your locker isn’t very appealing.
Most of the school’s curriculum is online across all the disciplines, especially after quarantine. We rely so heavily on online learning, even in the classroom, that if you forget to bring your Chromebook one day, you have to borrow one from the Chromebook office in order to participate in class activities.
Maybe lockers served a purpose in the 60s when students were given stacks of paper and textbooks in every class, but nowadays, students receive paper-based assignments only on rare occasions.
Though for some, there may be benefits to having a locker, mine will most likely remain empty during the school year. Perhaps the school should replace some of those unused lockers with more shaded seating for students, something that will never become outdated.
Lockers are still useful by Lily Angel
Although the majority of students rely on Canvas or Google Classroom for our assignments, students often have to bring more than a Chromebook to school. Lockers, therefore, offer students a safe place to store our items without the fear of them being stolen or damaged or without having to bother a teacher asking for space in a classroom to leave our things until we need them.
For instance, it is bothersome to carry your lunch with you all day. Your backpack either becomes uncomfortably full or you now have to carry two bags, a backpack and a lunch bag. If we have lockers, however, we can safely store it without fear of losing it or the pressure of having to carry it around.
Sometimes, students need to bring home physical projects such as ceramics and other VAPA artworks, it can be challenging to ensure that they will remain intact by the end of the school day.
Other students may have equipment for extracurricular activities such as orchestra and sports, so a locker could be of use to them to hold their instruments or sports equipment.
Lockers promote responsibility by having students be aware of their belongings, making them memorize a combination, and teaching them to respect other students’ belongings. Being aware of your belongings makes you less likely to lose them. Remembering a combination helps with showing responsibility. If you forget your combination, then you will not be prepared for your next class, and in remembering it, you will be prepared for your next class. It teaches students to respect others’ belongings by illustrating that if it is locked away, then they don’t want people interfering with their belongings. It is a good display of boundaries.
The Plaid Press 