Being at homecoming with lights on makes the experience seem more monitored and gives more of a classroom atmosphere. Students want dim to no light to give the feeling of a relaxed, yet energetic mood when at a school dance. Having the lights off relates with dancing and having fun. It helps create a calm balance in students emotions because it relieves stress and the feeling of being watched.
However, at GlenOak’s homecoming the lights are on making students feel more self-conscious about dancing and more visible to everyone.
The reason the lights are left on is because if the commons lights are turned off the bathroom lights would go off as well. However, the lights on ruins the mood.
“I would have more fun with the lights off because I can be myself and only worry about me and my friends having a good time,” “sophomore Averie Bickel said.
Students want to feel comfortable and at ease when dancing with friends and not like they’re being watched over the whole time.
Most importantly, humiliation is a huge thing to overcome in front of people you see regularly, especially when it comes to an activity like dancing and singing. Doing this may be found more pleasant in the dark as it camouflages awkward dance moves that kids may feel shameful doing when the lights are kept on.
“I don’t want to dance like someone is watching me I want to dance like I don’t care,” Bickel said.
Administration needs to change this because students shouldn’t feel the need to hold back and not express themselves fully at their own celebration.
Furthermore, the strobe lights aren’t as enhanced or perceivable in fluorescent light as they would be in darkness. Having the lights off adds excitement and mystery to the event by making the environment less predictable and more creative.
“I prefer using smaller color changing lights instead of big bright lights,” sophomore Alana West said.” “I think the regular lights in the cafeteria wash out the color in the strobe lights and ruin the vibe.”
If the lights weren’t on, it would point the students focus towards the music and less on trying to impress people. This would help prevent any disputes, crowd surfing and benefit student’s time at the dance.
Although it could cause students to get ideas of getting away with more, students would focus on behaving because the lights being off is a privilege that can be taken away as a consequence of poor decision-making.
Students council adviser Hailey Hoover explained while the lights are left on because they physically can’t be turned off without impacting the bathroom lights there are other things to consider.
“I do think it affects the behavior of the students,” Hoover said. “Teenagers tend to make poor decisions in the dark.”
However, homecoming should feel different then a normal day in the building. Most teachers keep their lights on during class, removing this aspect from homecoming can make the dance feel different from everyday class routine. Being in a darkened space also helps prevent headaches, social anxiety, even eye strain.
“I feel really lightheaded and get headaches easily when I am in school lighting,” Bickel said.
To make students at GlenOak feel more comfortable at the dance the lights should be off . Students would need to prove they will behave well enough to earn the lights being shut off.
