Julia Faxon, Staff Writer
All of us have harmless addictions- be it Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, Candy Crush, or a favorite show on Netflix. While staying up all night to finish a series, agonizing over a level on a game, and eating one (or ten) too many pieces of Halloween candy are completely innocent, no one would venture to call them constructive. But what if I told you there was something with the utmost productivity that so many of us are utterly obsessed with? You might deny that such an infatuation with something helpful and useful is impossible- but it’s not. I am one of the many in this school guilty of being addicted to PowerSchool.
It is the most visited web page on my phone. It’s bookmarked on every single one of the computers in my house. I have an app for it. Its URL address is forever branded into my brain- I will probably splutter out “ps.newtown.k12.ct.us” as I recite my wedding vows. PowerSchool is completely possessing and consuming my life.
I check PowerSchool every morning when I wake up and turn off the alarm on my phone, under the obviously false impression that anything could have changed since I last looked at 10:30 the night before. I almost subconsciously log on during every free second I have to fiddle with my phone. Whenever I have a test or quiz, I check the site an embarrassingly high number of times an hour, punching the web address into a computer with the intensity and vigor of a rabid animal.
I know I am not the only one obsessed with this seemingly innocent web tool. Whenever one of my classes goes to a computer lab, every screen is instantly illuminated with the white and blue chart showing the enticingly important grade history. When I ask friends what they are looking at on their phones, the answer is more likely to be “PowerSchool” than “Texting”, “Twitter”, or even “Christmas Countdown App”. For so many of us, PowerSchool is an addiction, and each and every one of our teachers is an enabler.
PowerSchool is not only an obsession; it plays a stupendously gigantic role in our moods. When I visit the site to find that I aced an essay, I am beyond elated. My world is rainbows and smiles. I am apt to bake cookies or skip down the hallways. Conversely, when I log in and realize that I did (much) less-than-stellar on my latest math test, my attitude is angry and gloomy. I come to school wearing sweatpants and a grimace.
These side effects are very common of most addictions. The mood swings, the dependency, and the way PowerSchool takes over so many lives are sure-fire signs of unhealthy obsession. My recommendation? The school should open a PowerSchool Anonymous chapter. Otherwise I may just have to check into rehab.
