New to Legacy high school, blaring alarms that jolt you awake every passing period. Flashing lights, loud alarms, and the sound of “September” playing in the hallways. Two minutes before the bell rings, flashing lights in the bathroom blind me every time I need to wash my hands. Are these new additions to the school, actually bells?
The nice thing about these new clocks is that students can see what time it is exactly. The art of reading analog clocks is long gone with this generation. I will admit not being asked constantly what time it is, is refreshing. Another nice thing about these tornado sirens is the flashing lights are useful if someone couldn’t hear the bell. Imagine wearing your headphones, blasting music, and the bell goes off, not being able to hear the bell you’re now late. With these flashing lights, you would look up.
However, if you can’t tell these new clocks are a bit intense. If you weren’t there for back to school night, the bells were a bit mixed up. They would go for ten seconds in a high pitch. It felt like the school was under attack. Even during the first week of school, it felt like the bell would go on longer than the normal two seconds Fortunately, the school was able to get the bells figured out and now the bells go on for a normal amount of time.
In addition to the bells, flashing lights now come on. In the bathroom, it is a blue light that illuminates all of the stalls, in classrooms, it is a yellow light that isn’t as harsh to the eyes.
Hannah Thomasy explains flashing lights can cause photosensitive epilepsy in certain individuals, but affects people from 5-24 years old more. Many people can develop epilepsy later in life or can live years without knowing they have epilepsy. Individuals without epilepsy can also be impacted with headaches and losing the ability to concentrate.
Overall, I believe the new alarms should be changed to not include the flashing lights. While they can be helpful, they are more harmful. While the digital clock is easier for students to read, we should have stuck with analog clocks since it is an important skill for every student to have.
What do you think?
Work Cited
Thomasy, Hannah, and Fabio Ballasina. “How Do Flashing Lights Trigger Epileptic Seizures?” BrainFacts, 28 January 2021, https://www.brainfacts.org/diseases-and-disorders/epilepsy/2021/how-do-flashing-lights-trigger-epileptic-seizures-012821. Accessed 15 September 2025.
