This is a point-counterpoint editorial. Read the opposing view at EDITORIAL (POINT): PLANNERS BENFIT STUDENTS.

In this technological era, online apps provide the means to make multiple activities easier, from finding restaurants to exercising; organizing daily schedules is no different. Planners are bulkier, easier to misplace, and require one to always carry a writing utensil. It’s much easier to download one of the countless apps available for smartphones instead of lugging around planners.

At the beginning of the school year, NBC News posted an article summarizing and promoting electronic apps that students could take advantage of throughout the school year to stay on top of their game.

Sophomore Shelby Resnick said, “I just find putting assignments into my phone much easier. Because I always have my phone on me, I also always have my assignments and tasks at hand. It’s perfect.”

Along with having the traditional quality of displaying assignments, meetings, and tasks, electronic planners also have the advantage of sending reminders. For example, applications such as Outlook and Google Calendar can be programmed to send daily emails listing the tasks for the day. Smartphones also allow reminders to be scheduled for due dates or set calendars as widgets, which allows a list of tasks to always be on the phones’ homepage.

Sophomore David Jones said, “I think it’s better to use my phone because I can set it up to alert me when it’s time to do homework. I’ve forgotten to do homework, even though I’d written it down in my planner, simply because I forgot to check my planner.”

These apps are programmed specifically for students and allow an array of functions from displaying homework and reminders to accommodating for block schedule.

 Senior Ines Botto said,”I use the SHS planner occasionally, but I prefer entering everything into an online account, so that all my tasks are in one place.”

Online apps also keep a permanent record of assignments, making it easy to review tasks that have been completed weeks before.

While staying organized can be helped by using a planner, it’s clear that there are newer, more convenient ways, to stay organized in every aspect of life.