Students at Lewis-Palmer are getting more and more restless. It’s hard to tell if it’s because of summer’s quick approach, or because of the unfortunate fact that it seems like we’re always being babysat by teachers and administrators.

I don’t doubt that their constant watch is for good reason and with noble intentions, but there comes a time where students need to be given a few more basic freedoms – maybe starting with actual internet connection.

Yes, I agree that blatantly inappropriate things should be censored through a web filter. But YouTube? All I want to do is watch a music video during my free period – it’s not like I’m trying to learn how to build a bomb. From my perspective, it seems like they’re trying to keep productivity up by forcing us to do homework instead of watching that funny cat video or listening to distracting music. And that makes sense.

But what happens when students graduate and go to college? There’s no one watching what they do on the internet there, no one keeping their watchful babysitter eye on them to make sure they’re doing their homework in their free time instead of messing around. What happens then?

In my mind, the simplest solution is to shut the filters off. Let us waste our time looking at pictures of a cat with a top hat and a moustache instead of doing homework. Let us do what we want to during our off time, and when the time comes to turn in homework that we don’t have finished, hold us accountable for it. Embarrass us in front of the class, make us write a letter explaining our wrongdoings – do something to show us that procrastination only hurts us in the long run, and force us to get our priorities straight now instead of in the harsh college atmosphere. It’s the only way we can learn to successfully manage our time.

In ten weeks the seniors will be gone from Lewis-Palmer and moving on to bigger and less restricting things. To be successful, we need to have some sense of personal accountability – starting with the freedom to make mistakes. It’s my honest opinion that if they give us freedom, eventually we’ll learn to use it right. And if we don’t, it’s nobody’s fault but our own.

The district wants us to be successful throughout our entire education. But are they actually preparing us for what comes after high school ends?