Ever wanted to use backpacks instead of inconvenient lockers? Ever wish all the people who wanted to use backpacks would use their backpacks so you can use lockers in peace?

Sign this petition.

 The backpacks in lockers policy should be optional.

There has been plenty of outrage towards this policy. When a community does not agree to a policy, it should be within our rights to reach out to those in power to work to change the goal. Our SAS core values include fairness and responsibility, and to be responsible and fair, we would need to listen to and value student opinion. 

 Many complaints have been heard about this policy. 7B did a SAS Reimagined project advocating for policies to change, and the most common topic was the locker policy. During a student focus group with Mr. Beingessner about lunch and break spaces, the locker policy was once again brought up and students across all grades and sides voiced their concerns on the policy. 

 One reason this policy has received such widespread hate is because of the crowd at the lockers. Since the lockers are in such close quarters, it is a race of who arrives first. If you don’t get there fast enough, you either have to squeeze your way between the people on both sides and also above or below (which is practically impossible), or wait an impossibly long time. Additionally, top lockers unavoidably drop things onto the bottom lockers, which poses safety issues. We’re only one water bottle away from a concussion. Many, including myself, have experienced such peril, and eliminating lockers would easily solve the problem.

 Another reason backpacks are preferred over lockers is because it is much easier and faster to carry all your things around, you are much more likely to be in a rush or late if you have to stop between classes to collect your things. Now, you may say that a student could just come by early to their locker if they are afraid of being late. But break is the little time in a day students can relax between classes, and it is not fair to ask them to shorten that time, even by a little bit, if the problem could be so easily avoided.

 Additionally, carrying all of your stuff in your hands makes you drop your stuff. When I go to class, I have to carry all my papers and workbooks, my pencil case, my water bottle, my computer, and more for specific classes, like my change of clothes for dance, or a book for ELA. On multiple occasions I drop my things, and my water bottle has many dents from this as well.

 Sometimes, locks can also be especially difficult. We get it; just learn to open it! Problem solved! But when a lock is actually broken and you have to spend forever figuring it out, or if you are a sixth grader and have never used a lock, it can be frustrating and time consuming. While this may train our critical thinking skills, it also takes away valuable time from real world issues, academics, and connecting with our peers.

 We understand the Administration has many logical reasons for creating the policy, but there are many reasons why the arguments don’t stand. In the MS bulletin, it stated four main reasons why the school has enforced this rule. Student health, student responsibility, classroom space, and student safety. 

Now, We understand that backpacks can damage posture, especially if you carry a lot of things around. However, when you think about things that damage student posture, what comes to mind is not backpacks. You think: Phones! Computers! Slouching! If removing backpacks was all it took to fix posture, we won’t even need scoliosis testing in school anymore. Even if you argue that we are fixing at least one aspect, the fact is that the student will probably still carry the backpack outside of school. And even in school, if they usually slouch because of the backpack, it’s not going to change because you remove it. It has become a habit.

 Another reason was student responsibility. According to the school, “thinking about what you need for each class helps you develop important thinking skills.” But here’s the thing: the things that people bring to class are generally the same. Water, pencil case, computer. Some people also carry around folders with worksheets/books for each class. Only in very few classes do you need other stuff. There’s enough to cause a hassle to carry, but not enough that it’s hard to remember what to bring. Additionally, packing bags each night is already training student responsibility, and there are plenty of ways to do so which are far more efficient.

 Another reason was because the school claimed backpacks took up space. But when I was in 6th grade, this rule didn’t exist, and students bought their backpacks everywhere. We were asked to store our backpacks under chairs/tables, and there wasn’t much hassle.

 Finally, the last but possibly the most important and sensible of the reasons: student safety.

 There had been a lot of theft before the school installed lockers. Now, it makes a great deal of sense to do this. However, let me present some reasons why it might be just as fitting to make lockers optional instead of mandatory.

 Firstly, making lockers optional would allow students to choose whether they want to use them or not. Students should also be given the option of storing some things in there, especially valuables, but still getting the chance to use their bags.

 Already, many students leave their locks unlocked or don’t use them for convenience. This already poses a risk to their valuables. In essence, allowing the lockers to be optional would pose the same risk, except with the added benefit that students have the freedom to choose which items they expose to theft. Valuable items like phones and jewelry, etc, could be locked while others are stored in a backpack for convenience. With this option available to students, it could allow freedom to choose which things to lock, and which things to keep for convenience, in turn actually lowering theft.

 A counter argument would be that back when the school did allow backpacks, there were more thefts, proving my theory wrong. However, a reason might be that it wasn’t emphasized to students that they could keep their valuables in their locker well enough. If students had been stressed how important it was to prevent theft, most might’ve put certain items in lockers.

 Finally, you might claim that even so, some, if not many, students would not heed the advice. However, consider two things.

 For one thing, there shouldn’t even be theft in the first place. SAS is supposed to be a safe environment. Even if we do have some policies, we never do full lessons about stealing. Forcing students to put their bags in their lockers, rather than attempting to educate us about theft and the consequences of it, is absurd, much like putting a band-aid on a situation. Students should never think theft is okay. SAS is all about trying to let students learn from their mistakes instead of simply administering consequences. In a way, the locker policy is against those beliefs. Instead of teaching, we are forcing.

 Secondly, I will admit that I do not know to the full extent SAS has tried to educate students on theft. Even if I personally have not experienced it, I can’t say for certain that we aren’t doing anything to help students learn. And I know for a fact that, even if SAS did do it’s best to teach about the consequences of theft, there would be some students who continue to ignore it.

 This is real life. Although society has good, honest people, it also has many people who steal, and would never learn. 

 A lot of students in SAS grow up sheltered from the real world. Aside from SAS being a very prestigious and sheltered environment, Singapore in general is quite safe. However, somewhere else in the world, that might not be the case. If a student cannot take the responsibility to keep valuables in a safe place and get the items stolen in this environment, they should face the consequences of theft, or they will never learn from their mistakes.

 At first glance this may seem ludicrous. However, SAS has been letting students deal with the consequences of their own actions for quite some time. Take student passwords. Say a student is irresponsible and purposefully tells other students their passwords, getting their private files and emails sent out. If the school managed to catch the culprit, great, the student would get educated accordingly. Meanwhile, the student who leaked their own passwords would also be reprimanded, but they would have to do little; it is the student who leaked the information that would have to face most of the consequences.

 But let's say the student wasn’t caught. This would mean that the student who shared their password with many people would be responsible. Although they didn’t directly cause the harm, they would have to face the consequences of their own irresponsibility. They would have to change their passwords, deal with their personal files, try to mend broken relationships, and so on.

 What the school wouldn’t do, however, is take away student laptops, or start not using passwords so students are forced to keep nothing personal inside their accounts. 

 All in all, students should have to face consequences of their own mistakes. If a student cannot be on guard and keep valuables safe, they should face the consequences: theft. After all, in a society where there are thieves everywhere, students should start valuing their belongings.

 Another common reason for lockers not mentioned in the bulletin was phones. The admin is worried that if students take their backpacks to class, they could sneak their phones in.

 Here’s the truth: students are already doing that. The locker policy does nothing to hinder anyone who wants to put the phone in a pocket. 

 We understand teachers want us to learn without distractions. If the Admin is still worried, we could always start enforcing a policy for advisory teachers to take away phones each morning, or policies to keep phones in lockers.

 Student voices should be heard. Please consider making the policy optional.