Put a Hold on Bathroom Passes

Many teachers throughout the school allot students two or three ‘bathroom passes’. These passes are the only times students are allowed to go to the bathroom in that specific class. When passes are not used students can earn bonus points on grades.

Bathroom passes should not be allowed as they put a cap on students’ normal bodily functions.

Bathroom passes require students to hold going to the bathroom. Students will give up their option to go to the bathroom because they need their passes so they do not fail a class. When students use all of their passes, certain teachers will forbid students from going to the restroom at all until the quarter or semester is over. Refraining from going to the bathroom can even have harmful effects. Over long periods of time, avoiding going to the bathroom can weaken muscles in the bladder. It can also cause urinary tract infections (UTIs) and in some cases increase the chances of kidney disease.

Although teachers utilize bathroom passes to give students the opportunity of bonus points, they are not fair. Students can have so many issues that would cause them to need to go to the bathroom frequently. It is very common for girls to contract a UTI at some point in their life. Because of this, they may have to visit the bathroom more frequently than others and use up their bathroom passes and lose their chance for extra credit. Girls also experience their period once a month, every month, for a week. This causes girls to have to visit the bathroom more often than male students. It is also common for girls between 10-15 to deal with irregular periods cause them the risk of bleeding through because they cannot track their period. These passes are not fair to students, especially girls, because of their bodily functions.

Bathroom passes should be done away with as they have very few positives. Talk to teachers about the unfairness and health problems these passes cause.