“Just kids knowing that if you don’t go to class or if you get caught being late, you most likely are going to get in trouble or go to the office, almost installing a sense of fear of getting caught,” campus aide Julena Alvarez said.
Hall sweeps are a disciplinary practice that M-A uses to minimize students wandering the halls after the bell, being late to class, or being in unauthorized areas—like the bike cages and tennis courts—during passing periods.
During hall sweeps, teachers close their doors when the bell rings. Once all doors are closed, campus aides walk the halls, sweeping up students who are wandering without a valid pass.
“Our role is to just push them. Once the bell rings, lunch is over, or the period ends. It’s just push, push, push as much as we can to make sure they get to where they need to go,” Alvarez said.
Late students are given disciplinary consequences such as a detention, a tardy mark, or prohibition from school events such as a football game or dance.
“I think hall sweeps are a necessary evil,” AP World teacher Candace Bolles said.
During hall sweeps, teachers are instructed to close their doors. However, some teachers go above and beyond by locking their doors. Of the 16 teachers interviewed, 11 lock their doors during hall sweeps.
Some students who get locked out of their classroom don’t want to have to face any consequences, so they choose to leave campus.
“It was my last period, so I just went home. It was the end of the day, so I just felt like there was no point. I just left,” an anonymous male student said. This student was interviewed while returning to school after skipping class.
Although they do aid students in getting to their classes on time, hall sweeps are controversial because students who are far away from their next class get penalized for being late, due to not having sufficient time.
“I think they’re effective by getting the people that are always late to class on time to class,” another male student who skipped class said. “I feel like it should be a little bit longer, because it’s rushing people. It should be an eight-minute hall sweep, or a seven-minute hall sweep to get people a little bit more time to get to class.”
In contrast, Alvarez believes that hall sweeps give students sufficient time to get to class. “It doesn’t take that long to get from one side of campus to another if you’re walking normally,” she said. “If you’re taking your time, you’re stopping, you’re drinking water, you’re taking the last couple of seconds to have a deep conversation with your friends, yeah, you’re gonna be late.”
