A few weeks ago, Frontline premiered a documentary called “Digital Nation”. In one segment, the vice-principle of Intermediate School 339, Bronx, NY, Dan Ackerman, demonstrates how he “remotely monitors” the students’ laptops for “inappropriate use”. (his demonstration begins at 4:36)
He says “They don’t even realize we are watching,” “I always like to mess with them and take a picture,” and “9 times out of 10, THEY DUCK OUT OF THE WAY.”
He says the students “use it like it’s a mirror” and he watches. He says 6th and 7th graders have their cameras activated. It looks like the same software used by the Pennsylvania school that is being investigated for covertly spying on students through their webcams.
The shocking thing about this is that the privacy concerns were not even mentioned in the Frontline documentary!
This is beyond belief. The PBS documentary treats this as though it’s acceptable behavior. What is wrong with these people?
ok, just so u realize..they were using a remote desktop tool, and the only way they saw the student was because the STUDENT was running a photo app so they could look at themselves. I see no reason that this is bad, Coporations monitor PC activity all the time. What i DO have a problem with, is doing this while the kids are at home. Because then they are not in a public setting, and it is a breach of privacy. Monitoring the students activities while in school is completly acceptable, and I believe, necessary when u give kids laptops. Watching the kids at home is not acceptable. This is.
Big difference to what was happening in the other instance that has been all over the news lately.
I would have been the smartass that stuck tape over the camera so they couldn’t watch. I probably would have gotten in trouble for it too.
They also only used the computers at school. They weren’t allowed to take them home!
The monitoring of the camera bothers me, but. If the computer belongs to the school, much as my work computer belongs to my employer. There is an acceptable use policy. Monitoring the use of the computer to determine if they are violating that policy does not bother me. One very important part of that is that this policy needs to be explicitly explained. The problem with the video is that it may be out of context. Does the principle or the IT people only monitor the use during school hours etc.
@#1 “Monitoring the students activities while in school is completly acceptable,” – yes, but by law ONLY with prior notification of students and parents. From the article: “They don’t even realize we are watching,”
@McCullogh “The PBS documentary treats this as though it’s acceptable behavior. What is wrong with these people?” – they are BigLeft who assume that every person is BigStupid and must be observed, nanny-ed and social engineered until their brains are well washed for “enlightened” understanding of the World through the BigLeft eyes. PBS is what Goebbels propaganda was.
Nothing’s wrong with these people.
#1’s got it.
I think this is great! They was only using them at school. You could tell this because the kids was taking the computers out of closets in the class room. And I know for a fact the Remote Desktop is used all over school and even peoples works. Its on every Windows OS since XP. And the chances of the Remote Desktop working outside of the schools network is slim to none.
#6. Ah..just go ahead and chip your kids. That would be OK too. Cameras in the classrooms..no problem. Put them in the bathrooms too.
Let’s just turn into the UK and put cameras everywhere.
Much as I hate to say this, the idea of cameras in the classroom appeals to me. A camera in the class could eliminate disruptions. If a student becomes disruptive or violent it would be captured on tape. Then when the student is suspended or expelled it would be hard to argue with.
This is wrong. If you think it’s right you have no ethics. Spying on children is wrong. No excuse.
This was in a classroom where there is no expectation of privacy.
This is not at all like the Lower Marion district turning on webcams on students at home.
#8 McCullough, what the heck does keeping an eye to make sure a student is doing what they are supposed to be doing on a computer they are “given use of”. What is the privacy concern?? Chipping a kid or cameras in bathrooms are totally 100% different and are privacy issues of course, but they don’t even apply here in the least, you make no case.
#10 You accuse others of no ethics? for shame. You talk of ethics yet you have not studied ethics. How do I know this? I have, and this is not an ethic issue. This is not spying on kids this is “monitoring” kids to make sure they are doing their school work, it’s totally different. This is exactly the same as a teacher walking around the class room watching students at work only this is what required in a computer age. The fact you can’t see the error or your mistaken definition of “ethics” makes me worry what you would do to destroy a valid method of teaching as shown in the results of improved education.
Think back to when you were in school. If you can imagine a small camera mounted on your desk with the ability to watch everything you do, 8 hours a day, 5 days a week. Are you good with that?
And that’s where it’s heading.
#8, too late, there are cameras everywhere in urban areas. If you live along a border, there’s cameras there too.
A lot of people think these school IT admins are a bunch of pedophiles, but what IF someone monitoring a students home actually catches a child being sexually abused?
I use Remote Desktop like this in my classroom to monitor student activity. If I see that a student’s computer is running Apple’s Photo Booth software as in the Frontline video, I bring up the screen and send the student a chat message and they return to work. I also use it for instruction, demonstration, and individually troubleshooting.
As a teacher I’m charged with monitoring my student’s activities in class and that includes when they are using a computer. I take this responsibility seriously and Remote Desktop helps me do this in a most efficient manner.
Even without cameras every time you search the web from school the search is recorded and all electronic email from school is supposed to be recorded by federal law. The schools also have software so the instructor can observe what all the computers are doing from their desk and if need be lock a computer down and call the boss.
The only time I’ve ever been _seriously_ interested in what students were doing on line at home is when a lower grade student showed me a print out from a pervert he was communicating with on line. I turned that over to the proper authorities which may have been why the kid showed it to me.
If you are I did this we would be in jail for serious crimes
The Cops should check the Bureaucrat’s computer for KIDDIE PORN !!! How many “Pictures” did he take and what were the kids doing ? There’s more to this story than we are hearing !
If the school didn’t want them to use PhotoBooth why couldn’t they just delete the program. Only allow the kids use the necessary programs.
“What is wrong with these people?” Good question. The unwitting public assumes that PBS is operating in the public’s best interest. I would look at who is ‘underwriting’ this program. Nothing is free, including the cost of producing this show. There has to be some agenda.
Who “owns” the laptop / camera?
McCullough, I kept on reading through the comments to see if you’d ever get a fucking clue and realize that the monitoring shown in the video only took place IN THE CLASSROOM, and NOT at the student’s home. Alas, your tiny mind never appeared to be able to absorb this small but important fact.
When on school premises and using school equipment (as the notebooks were) its damn well acceptable for a remote desktop type program to be in use to make sure the students aren’t doing stuff that could not only impact on their learning, but to also prevent them from accessing sites that NO kid should ever be exposed to.
In the home, well thats a totally different story. NOBODY has the right to spy on kids like the pedophiles at the Lower Marion district were caught doing, nobody except the parents (though that would most likely never happen as most parents these days have no idea of how to parent).
As for chipping children, fine by me providing #1 ONLY the parents can access the location data
#2 The chips can release cyanide
What “inappropriate use” could the students be using these laptops for, that a webcam would show? Rude gestures? Dancing naked? And why do these school laptops even NEED a working webcam?
Seems they created the problem (or temptation), in order that they might have cause to snoop, inappropriately. Shut down the webcam drivers, and just monitor the network traffic for P2P, porn, and such.
When I was at school we didn’t have computers, just pens and paper. The teachers used to sometimes walk up and down the classroom to look over our shoulders. I always assumed it was to check we were working when they set us a task – never occurred to me they were actually doing that because they were paedophiles or control-freak agents of the state.
No myspace or instant messaging back then either, but we could have shouted across the classroom and passed messages and doddles amongst ourselves if it wasn’t for the unacceptable behaviour of our teachers.
Rereading the article, this Dan Ackerman sounds like a little tin plated god, of the school system. Setting a fine example of mistrust. All the while, NY governors are leaving office in disgrace.
He’s a little creepy, but nowhere near as bad as the people near Philly.
Comedy:
http://a1.phobos.apple.com/us/r1000/030/Purple/cc/53/c3/mzl.wscgfuzt.480×480-75.jpg
@#5they know they are being watched…they might not know when, but at 5:29 he is sending a message to one of the students telling them to get back to work.
#1
Is on the money.
The camera is on – if the student turns on the camera. If the student doesn’t want to be seen on the camera – they don’t need to open the camera based apps jeez.
These are computers owned by the school and used in class. Its the virtual equivalent of the teacher looking over your shoulder. I’m assuming a teacher looking over your shoulder is not an ‘invasion of privacy’ issue.
If it was a laptop out of class. Or if the camera could take photos/video remotely (ie without student running the app) – well then that’s not right.
Apples and Oranges, McCullough. These laptops are being used at school, where students should realize that they can be watched/monitored at any time. The PA case involves looking at kids while they are at home on their own time. Way different.
I love how the contributing editors on this site seem to only post for sensationalism, making correlations where there is none to be made, and getting people up in arms. I don’t even know why I keep bothering to come over here and read the articles at this point, it’s journalism at its WORST.