I Bet You’re Reading This On Your Phone, Aren’t You?

Have you ever tried to have a conversation with someone and they repeatedly check their phone? Have you ever felt ignored by somebody while trying to talk because of their addiction to their cell phone? It’s not the best feeling, is it? It’s as if checking the latest tweets or Snapchat stories is more important than having an actual conversation with somebody. This problem doesn’t seem like it’s going to go away anytime soon, if anything, it’s going to get worse.

The problem of cell phone addiction can be seen everywhere, even here at Lakeview. Everyday countless numbers of students pace around the hallways staring at their device, whether it be their smartphone or a GISD provided iPad. This causes huge amounts of traffic in the hallways and delays students from arriving to class on time.

“It’s annoying because I try to get to class on time,” sophomore Alexander Carrillo said. “But sometimes there’s just way too many people walking slow because they’re looking at their phones, and I end up getting to class late because of someone else’s action.”

Pretty much everybody feels irritated while talking to someone who’s on their phone. They don’t even bother to make eye contact; they just stare at their phone replying only with phrases such as “uh-huh”, “yeah”, and “cool.” They pay more attention to their phone than to the person they’re talking to. Not only is it annoying, it’s also very rude to do something like that.

“I hate that so much,” freshman Samuel Cervantes said. “It doesn’t even feel like a conversation, it’s basically just me talking to myself in those situations.”

On the other hand, there are students, like junior Christopher Lopez, who say they don’t mind talking to someone who’s constantly on their phone.

“I mean, I can’t really say I hate it, ‘cause I also do that to other people,” Lopez said. “I guess I’m alright with it as long as they don’t get mad when I do it to them.”

This problem can especially be seen in the cafeteria during lunchtime. When walking down the cafeteria, countless students all sitting together and not saying a single word to each other can be seen; they’re all just sitting next to each other in silence, and in an attempt to escape the awkwardness, they turn to their smartphone. People aren’t talking anymore, they just show each other funny pictures or videos and then go back to scrolling through their feed.

“I’ve seen people sitting without talking in lunch as well,” Cervantes said. “There’s no talking going on, just awkward silence.”

Anybody who says this might sound like a crazy antisocial 40-year-old man who lives out in the woods and is completely against technology, but that’s not always the case. Technology, when used properly, is an amazing tool that benefits all areas of our life. That’s what we should try and improve on, using it properly while still keeping basic manners in mind.