School District Goes All "Big Brother" on Students

[chadachada123]

snip

I'm sorry bro. I'll make the next avatar extra amazing for you [/quote]

*Yes*

I feel like I just earned an achievement or something. I feel so important =D

Myself, I have just never gotten around to changing this avatar (that was supposed to be a gif anyway) from being MLP-related. My avatar is shared by at LEAST two other users, too, which has made some...interesting arguments =/

 

[McMullen]

-Snip-

That's right, it was a promo shot from ME1 wasn't it? More purplish tint to her mask than there is in later games IIRC.

Correct. I put up the avatar during the lead-up to ME2, and it stayed until about an hour and a half ago.

Gratz on the change and welcome to the legion of the unknown. We can enter and exit threads without detection as people forgot we even exist!

NOOOOoooooo! I liked the cat! He was always smiling, always so confident, he made me feel like we could accomplish anything.

And now he's gone, as if one day he was just dozing off on the driveway of offline accounts and was backed over by the truck of shifting user preferences. Tragic.

These forums are a darker place now.

 

[YicklePigeon]

As an idea, I both like it and dislike it. As others have said, if it was just within school hours or two hours before the start of that student's first class of the day then it would be fine. Personally, I've had the idea in my mind for sometime when I was going to college...if only to prove that yes, I was indeed at the train station for 7:32am cursing at the delayed 7:35am service that wouldn't be appearing until 7:46am!

There were a few times when I was running late, when it wasn't my fault, that I would have liked something that could prove that I done everything short of leaving my flat at the crack of dawn. And whenever it was my fault - I'd just admit to it, no point trying to hide it like the kid who tries to hide that they've been smoking by chewing a pack of spearmint Wrigleys...

But having these chips active at all hours? Here's a better idea: have the student enable tracking when they've set out to college and, once it is shown that they have a good attendance over the first semester, they can opt out (unless their attendance dips, in which case it is back to being tracked). It is, in effect, "trustee status" but it should hopefully work as an aspiration (and also that going back to first semester status would be a deterrent).

Also, another idea is to actually transform the education system to make it suitable for all those of different speeds and requirements and...ah wait, that would actually be something good and decent. Nevermind!

 

[Bravo 21]

Meh, I'd probably leave mine inside my locker when not a school. Still seems slightly unnerving though.

 

[Yopaz]

Actually so long as it's within school hours, I don't think it's a terrible idea, minus the "not allowed into common areas" thing. And fining kids might be a bit much as well. But personally, I wouldn't have cared if the school ID thing I had tracked where I was during school time. That may have been because I was a good boy and stayed in school, but maybe that's just me.

And what religious beliefs would stop someone from using this ID?

This is how I feel too. This can save in a ton of money which can in turn be used to improve the education of the students who attend that school. It's not like they're being watched, it's just their position which is known. However this is Texas, anything Texas does is crazy by default so wanting to increase school funding must be crazy too.

 

[Fr]anc[is]

I'm more interested in figuring out how a handful of kids skipping class equates to 175,000 fucking dollars.

 

[Elementary - Dear Watson]

I suppose I am bias though... I had a tough time in school because I obeyed rules, and now I work for an organisation that has a second law system on top of the national one, strict rules, strict uniform and they like to know where we are!

What sort of area are you working in, if you don't mind me asking (or can answer without having to kill all who read)?

I am an officer in the Royal Air Force. Security is my bread and butter, as we all in the forces deal with it every day!

If you think about it, this card system is not much different to the card systems they have with a lot of jobs to make you are in on time and stuff... It only appears shocking because of the 'oh noes, think of the children' rhetoric that is in our culture. This system isn't there to spy on kids, it's there because there is a duty to care for the kids. The kids SHOULD be in school. Parents trust the school to look after their kids and this is just a process the school is using to ensure that they can look after the kids.

A kid skipped school in my hometown a couple of years ago, and subsequently got run over. The parents instantly blamed the school, and of course legally it was the schools fault, but how do they protect against that when as soon as they change something they are accused of acting like a prison or big brother state?

 

[RicoADF]

Essentially this school district's so bad on attendance they are sticking RFID tags on their students like they're packages in transit. This is highly unethical and a huge invasion of privacy if you ask me. What do you guys think?

Also, saying "of course this is in Texas" does not qualify as contributing to the conversation.

K thanx

I think "- sticking RFID tags on their students like they're packages in transit." is pushing it.

All of the students at my Highschool have student IDs. We need it so the school can keep track of who attended/used what and when. Remember guys an RFID is just a card you'd use to unlock a door at work or something. I use it every day to get into the office and get into the datacenter. How is using a student ID to sign out a laptop or sign in to study hall any different?

Though Texas did blow it out of the water by forcing people with religious concerns to transfer. I think that break the first amendment. And how is using RFIDs going to improve attendance? Students need to actually show up for that.

Just remember US citizens, this is your tax money.

This is one that has a GPS on it that will tell the teachers where the students are at all times, even outside of school. VERY different matter to a security pass style system.

I suppose I am bias though... I had a tough time in school because I obeyed rules, and now I work for an organisation that has a second law system on top of the national one, strict rules, strict uniform and they like to know where we are!

What sort of area are you working in, if you don't mind me asking (or can answer without having to kill all who read)?

I am an officer in the Royal Air Force. Security is my bread and butter, as we all in the forces deal with it every day!

If you think about it, this card system is not much different to the card systems they have with a lot of jobs to make you are in on time and stuff... It only appears shocking because of the 'oh noes, think of the children' rhetoric that is in our culture. This system isn't there to spy on kids, it's there because there is a duty to care for the kids. The kids SHOULD be in school. Parents trust the school to look after their kids and this is just a process the school is using to ensure that they can look after the kids.

A kid skipped school in my hometown a couple of years ago, and subsequently got run over. The parents instantly blamed the school, and of course legally it was the schools fault, but how do they protect against that when as soon as they change something they are accused of acting like a prison or big brother state?

As stated above, a pass system inside the school and a GPS tracker that works outside of school is 2 different things.

 

[Flames66]

If you think about it, this card system is not much different to the card systems they have with a lot of jobs to make you are in on time and stuff... It only appears shocking because of the 'oh noes, think of the children' rhetoric that is in our culture. This system isn't there to spy on kids, it's there because there is a duty to care for the kids. The kids SHOULD be in school. Parents trust the school to look after their kids and this is just a process the school is using to ensure that they can look after the kids.

A kid skipped school in my hometown a couple of years ago, and subsequently got run over. The parents instantly blamed the school, and of course legally it was the schools fault, but how do they protect against that when as soon as they change something they are accused of acting like a prison or big brother state?

You make an interesting point. I am against this in schools and probably would not work somewhere that required a similar system either. I have always valued my privacy more than my work places (or schools) security. I dislike entering areas with cameras and I do not sign into buildings (such as sports centers and hospitals). Maybe I am biased, but I think it is despicable to indoctrinate children to the idea that surveillance and privacy invasion are just a part of life.

 

[ohnoitsabear]

In Northern Ireland have had big problems with kids not attending schools that actually made the news the other week.

To encourage attendance they started benefits schemes for pupils of high attendance, and implemented a mobile phone texting system to inform parents that their children are not at school that day.

How bad must the children be to have to track them.... or how insane are the adults implementing this scheme. There are dozens of less extreme implementations that have helped elsewhere, why not try some of those?

Some people don't understand that rewarding good behavior is much more effective than punishing bad behavior. But seriously, morality of tracking students aside, this would be much more effective than what this school is doing.

Doesn't seem too harsh. I mean, as long as you only have to carry it with you while you're in school it's no worse than surveillance cameras.

Surveillance cameras in schools are also unacceptable.

Not necessarily. If a school is using them to know where every student is at every time, then you'd have an argument. However, if the cameras are there, but only looked at in case something serious happens (more serious than a few kids skipping class), then they do have value. For example, one year at my school, there were two bomb threats, and the school didn't have any security cameras, and they weren't able to figure out who did it either time. Had they had security cameras, they could have figured out who did it right away. So security cameras in schools actually do have legitimate value.

 

[Zeren]

Take a large magnet to the card. That should fix the problem.

 

[Flames66]

Not necessarily. If a school is using them to know where every student is at every time, then you'd have an argument. However, if the cameras are there, but only looked at in case something serious happens (more serious than a few kids skipping class), then they do have value. For example, one year at my school, there were two bomb threats, and the school didn't have any security cameras, and they weren't able to figure out who did it either time. Had they had security cameras, they could have figured out who did it right away. So security cameras in schools actually do have legitimate value.

If they are not there, the opportunity to misuse them does not exist.

 

[Seydaman]

Doesn't seem too harsh. I mean, as long as you only have to carry it with you while you're in school it's no worse than surveillance cameras.

Surveillance cameras in schools are also unacceptable.

I have cameras in my school, but they are pretty general, and only the receptionist watches them, I think it's that the company the school rents the building from (Cummings Center) might require it for minors.

 

[VoidWanderer]

I am wondering if this is going to spread to the rest of the States if it proves effective...

[Texas School] used Student Tagging on Students.
It's Super Effective!!!

Sorry, just had to type that down.

This will prove interesting to keep an eye on...

 

[DarkishFriend]

This might need clarification...
RFID=/=GPS tracking. These things can't be read more than a few feet away, at most, and the card only has to be carried with you on campus, it's not under your skin. It can't actually "track" your position like someone is monitoring the position of over 100,000 students. It's a simple card, that is probably scanned in the morning to help with attendance and make finding people who are skipping much easier. This isn't an invasion of privacy because I bet there are thousands of schools in America where you're forced to have an ID card on you so they know you actually go there, mine is one of them, but suddenly when the thing has a radio chip in it all hell breaks loose.

 

[Arakasi]

This might need clarification...
RFID=/=GPS tracking. These things can't be read more than a few feet away, at most, and the card only has to be carried with you on campus, it's not under your skin. It can't actually "track" your position like someone is monitoring the position of over 100,000 students. It's a simple card, that is probably scanned in the morning to help with attendance and make finding people who are skipping much easier. This isn't an invasion of privacy because I bet there are thousands of schools in America where you're forced to have an ID card on you so they know you actually go there, mine is one of them, but suddenly when the thing has a radio chip in it all hell breaks loose.

Sensationalism sells.
They tied it into this story:

In California, the Anaheim Union High School District is also in the midst of testing a GPS tracking program. From Salon:

Each school day, the delinquent students get an automated "wake-up" phone call reminding them that they need to get to school on time. In addition, five times a day they are required to enter a code that tracks their locations: as they leave for school, when they arrive at school, at lunchtime, when they leave school and at 8pm. These students are also assigned an adult "coach" who calls them at least three times a week to see how they are doing and help them find effective ways to make sure they get to school.

Of course, this one is unethical.

 

[snekadid]

This is only the first step, next when they wont wear them you'll see kids with tagged ears like they do to dear to monitor their growth.

RFIDs are constantly transmitting, not just while they are in school. Those signals are picked up by cellphones and other wireless devices and transmitted as "junk data" along with everything else. Whats to keep some enterprising perverts from turning them into stalking devices?

Having a pass with a barcode on it you scan when you enter school or to use the cafe would be a far better idea, people are too eager to jump on new technology without thinking through the ramifications and vulnerabilities these things have.

 

[Pyramid Head]

Okay i'm not totally opposed to some measures being taken to try and improve the attendance of truant students, and i'm honestly not surprised that this is happening in Texas because the shit education would explain the existence of worthless idiots like Bush and Perry in elected offices in that state, but this seems like a stupid idea to me. The tracking ID is an obligation for all students? Students are barred from school lunches and extracurricular activities unless they're wearing these special ID tags? Way too draconian, in my opinion this is going to backfire before it has a real effect. Then again with how bad Texas is on so many issues i have to consider things that may make it harder for public schools to maintain proper classes. Maybe extreme measures like this are all they have left until they get more funding, but that still seems unlikely.

 

[lunavixen]

I could agree to this for chronically absent students, but not the wider student population, and the texting 5 times a day?! that's excessive, i'm just glad they never did it to us