Wow.
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Nobody’s accusing any of your teachers and administrators of wrongful behavior. So I’m not understanding why you’re taking this so personally.
I don’t think it’s a “conspiracy theory” to point out vulnerabilities and potentials for abuse when you see them. Acting to secure students’ privacy and safety via sound policy and protocol won’t just protect students and their families. It will also serve to protect the teachers and administrators you’re concerned about. Spell out exactly how students can use laptops, spell out exactly how schools can interact with their property when it is off school grounds, and everyone benefits. As it is, I do think the policy is too vague and could use some refining.
At the risk of being intrusive… you seem really stressed out lately. I hope you’re okay, I hope things get better. And if it helps…
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You are such a kind soul.
I know it wasn’t meant for me, and I’m not the person who clearly needs a hug, but here’s one right back at cha’ anyway:
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Yup. Especially as it’s not a conspiracy, it’s a proven goddamn fact that it has already happened as has been pointed out above.
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Just a friendly reminder that even if somebody is spouting bigoted views, calling them a bigot is considered a personal attack and grounds for post deletion here. Likewise with proto-fascism and nanny-statistism.
What you can do is call a post itself bigoted or flag it.
(Disclosure: I’ve had posts eaten for being incivil)
Edit:
Edited to remove insulting people.
Use a usb/bluetooth cam/mic. There is a requirement for some computers to not have cams or mics.
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Isn’t that what your mobile phone is for?
It’s relevant because it has already happened. You might want to check the associated articles before making yourself look silly, next time.
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No. It’s not just YOUR state and you don’t get a vote in the matter.
What in the world made you think that was an appropriate thing to say?
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I used to work as a teacher. I currently work at a company whose computer policy sounds similar to @quorihunter 's.
Stuff like this makes me glad I’m not in teaching anymore. Teachers 15 years ago couldn’t manage the tech back then, so those of us who taught computer classes were constantly holding afternoon sessions to educate them and provide tech support.
Back then the struggle was to get teachers to understand students didn’t care about their privacy. There was always some 15yo who wanted to show off something they’d learned from an older sibling so they could claim they were a hacker. I had to rescue exam files from lab machines between classes sometimes.
Now: I joke my company’s policies are why I have a data plan for my phone, but really I like having things separate. However, I’m a grownup who works in an IT department, and my company-issued laptop doesn’t have a camera or a mic jack.
For kids: if I were a teacher, I wouldn’t want students with built-in mics or cameras on their machines. Too many nightmare scenarios. I had to deal with a kid using a school camera to make a video of himself mooning it, and that was bad enough – cueing the damn recording to show his mother his pimply ass and prove I wasn’t making it up or “overreacting” (women teachers get accused of prudery all the time. I so don’t miss that job.)
If I got to spend the school budget, I’d have external mics and cameras that never left the school.
As for the personal use: if they’re for school, they should be locked down tight and not encouraged for personal use. If kids can’t afford their own devices, there are ways (and they should be better funded/easier to access) to get access to a machine for personal use. Used hardware is a thing – I grew up using it. The upside of using older hardware is you learn how to maintain a computer, fast.
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So every kid gets a Chromebook, which I guess provides a digital workspace for them to do homework. With educational discounts the schools probably spending at least $150 per machine, plus all the software and infrastructure needed to support the machines. And the major benefit of these things is their portability, which means they can be used for homework, which has dubious utility anyway. And in the meantime this new investment brings us all these problems. And does it improve educational outcomes, or does it just make bucketloads of money for the people driving all the educational legislation in my state?
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Yes. Yes, it does.
At high schools in Canada, laptops are available, but must be checked out by a teacher for the duration of a class period. Homework standards are pretty lenient; you’re often given a ton of in-class computer time to do assignments. And because of the leniency (in Language Arts, for example) you can get away with reading a book and bashing out a four-hundred word essay by hand, even in Year 12.
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Statistically, it’s almost guaranteed. Here’s a concrete analogous example: TSA agent jerking off to pics from airport security Nude-O-Scope.
ETA link to reference.
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This is great until someone comes out of the shower and you have now crossed into child pornography territory.
Is there a way to review what images are captured?
Is there process of ensuring nothing gets posted online somewhere?
Curse You!.
years ago, slate promoted something called bloggingheads tv. Although the topics initially intrigued me, the audio quality was so poor as to drive me away…
Pretty great that students read whole books up there. Most American students have a hard time finishing a whole meme.
/getoffmygrass
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I live in Rhode Island (I moved here in ’73 for Brown) and this is the first I’ve heard of this.
If I was a parent with the means, I’d drop the legal equivalent of a tactical nuke on these assholes.
This is completely beyond belief, and I want to see all those responsible twisting slowly, slowly in the wind.
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The “inferiority complex” part of this is dead on – no joke. (RI resident since ”73.)
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Portsmouth originally (no longer there). Love I how can tell which part of Rhode Island people are from by their accent.
When I first arrived, I was stunned when I met lovely women (with BIG hair) who would open their mouths to speak, and toads would leap forth.
Creeeeaaannnstoooon. [Cranston.]
I’m right across from Portsmouth now, in Bristol. Wonderful town.
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