We, the undersigned students of Belgium Campus, respectfully call on the university administration to immediately reconsider and reverse the recent decision to ban the use of laptops during lectures.

This policy is not only unfair, but also contradicts the university’s own guidelines, which previously stated that laptops were a required tool for our studies. Many of us made significant financial investments to purchase laptops based on this expectation—money that, for many families, was not easy to spend. Now being told that we can no longer use them in class is both disrespectful and wasteful.

While we acknowledge that desktop computers are provided in classrooms, they are often slow, outdated, and unreliable. These limitations actively interfere with our ability to follow along, take notes efficiently, or use required applications. More importantly, learning doesn’t stop at the classroom door. At home and in study areas, our laptops are our primary learning tools. Banning their use in class only disrupts our workflow, note-taking continuity, and access to digital learning resources.

Laptops are not distractions—they are essential. We use them to:

• Access prescribed e-textbooks and academic portals
• Take structured and backed-up digital notes
• Conduct real-time research and reference material
• Work on code, design, data, or specialized assignments
• Sync our work between home and class seamlessly

This blanket ban not only undermines our learning, but it also sends a troubling message: that students cannot be trusted to use tools responsibly. We are not school children; we are adult learners, many of whom are juggling full-time studies, work, and family commitments. We deserve to be treated with trust and respect.

We recognize that some students may misuse laptops during class, but punishing everyone for the actions of a few is not a fair or effective solution. Instead, we propose:

• Allowing lecturers to manage and set laptop expectations for their individual classes
• Creating guidelines for academic use only
• Allowing laptop users to sit in designated areas, such as front rows, if necessary

We urge the university to reverse this policy and work with students—not against us—to build a learning environment that supports responsibility, flexibility, and academic success.

Signed,
Belgium Campus Students