The Coffee Cup Blues
A student lies asleep in class, exhausted and lacking any energy. She dreams of a warm cup of sweet coffee sitting next to her. If she had the cup, maybe she would be awake and energetic. Some high schoolers need an extra burst of caffeine to get them going in the morning and don’t have enough time to down the boiling liquid before they get to class. The Chillicothe High School policy prohibiting students from having any drink besides water needs to be changed because high schoolers are responsible and can handle “colored drinks,” the drinks would not be a distraction in class, and caffeinated drinks help students have energy.
To begin with, a main excuse given as to why students can’t have colored drinks is because spills would be too messy; however, high schoolers are responsible enough to handle the drinks. The school administration says that spilling a colored drink would wreak more havoc than spilling the water students are allowed to have. However, if students were to dump their coffee on their worksheet or computer, the colored liquid would cause the same damage as a water spill. If students follow the closed container rule and act responsibly with their drinks, these spills should not happen no matter what is in the cup.
In addition, having a drink other than water in class would not cause any distractions. A point made by the administration is that drinks would cause students to not pay attention in class. The only difference between water and any other drink is the color, and having these drinks would not create any distractions that are not already present in the learning environment. In the same sense, once students are out of their drink, they would not have access to a refill. Since the vending machines are off during the day, there is no place in the school for a student to get another cup of coffee or a new bottle of Dr. Pepper. One cup of coffee in the morning isn’t going to deplete a student’s ability to learn. If anything, the caffeine will elevate the level of focus.
Also, if students could have coffee or other caffeinated drinks, they would be more awake and have more focus in class. Most administrators will argue that younger students would be too energetic, and caffeine would be bad for students’ bodies to have all day. While that makes sense, high schoolers are at a different level in the intensity of their learning, extracurriculars, and activities. Some students don’t get home from practice or work until eight or nine every night and then have three hours of homework to do. They are dead tired the next day at school and need a caffeine boost to get through the day.
All matters considered, students need to be able to have caffeinated drinks in school because high schoolers are responsible enough to handle the drinks, colored drinks wouldn’t distract the students from learning, and caffeine makes students more attentive. The administrators at Chillicothe High need to install a new policy that allows caffeinated drinks for students. If this were done, the same student that was asleep in her classes is now wide awake and ready to learn, with her steaming cup of coffee in tow.
To begin with, a main excuse given as to why students can’t have colored drinks is because spills would be too messy; however, high schoolers are responsible enough to handle the drinks. The school administration says that spilling a colored drink would wreak more havoc than spilling the water students are allowed to have. However, if students were to dump their coffee on their worksheet or computer, the colored liquid would cause the same damage as a water spill. If students follow the closed container rule and act responsibly with their drinks, these spills should not happen no matter what is in the cup.
In addition, having a drink other than water in class would not cause any distractions. A point made by the administration is that drinks would cause students to not pay attention in class. The only difference between water and any other drink is the color, and having these drinks would not create any distractions that are not already present in the learning environment. In the same sense, once students are out of their drink, they would not have access to a refill. Since the vending machines are off during the day, there is no place in the school for a student to get another cup of coffee or a new bottle of Dr. Pepper. One cup of coffee in the morning isn’t going to deplete a student’s ability to learn. If anything, the caffeine will elevate the level of focus.
Also, if students could have coffee or other caffeinated drinks, they would be more awake and have more focus in class. Most administrators will argue that younger students would be too energetic, and caffeine would be bad for students’ bodies to have all day. While that makes sense, high schoolers are at a different level in the intensity of their learning, extracurriculars, and activities. Some students don’t get home from practice or work until eight or nine every night and then have three hours of homework to do. They are dead tired the next day at school and need a caffeine boost to get through the day.
All matters considered, students need to be able to have caffeinated drinks in school because high schoolers are responsible enough to handle the drinks, colored drinks wouldn’t distract the students from learning, and caffeine makes students more attentive. The administrators at Chillicothe High need to install a new policy that allows caffeinated drinks for students. If this were done, the same student that was asleep in her classes is now wide awake and ready to learn, with her steaming cup of coffee in tow.