Schools need to develop a balanced approach to content filtering. The school where I work currently blocks nothing. Students are technically free to access any content they wish. Of course, we have policies stating what content is acceptable, but as any teacher knows, it is not possible to see exactly what every student is doing at the same time. While this is certainly risky, it has it's advantages as well.
When I decide I want to try using a new Web 2.0 tool, I can do so without any red tape. I may have other obstacles such as antiquated equipment and insufficient internet speed, but at least I do not need to get permission to access the content I need. It is a shame that YouTube is blocked at many schools because it is an excellent source for teachers and students. Unfortunately, it also has a lot of inappropriate content and provides a potential distraction.
Students at my school are allowed (and often encouraged) to listen to music while engaging in independent activities. Some students find this helps them tune-out distractions in the classroom (I have a lot of students with ADHD). When using computers, a lot of my students will opt to listen to music on YouTube. Some students use playlists so they don't have to constantly pick their next song, but many of my students don't manage this privilege well. I constantly have to remind them that they are only allowed to LISTEN to the music, not watch the videos. The other problem I face with sites like YouTube is the drain they put on our limited bandwidth.
Besides YouTube, Facebook is often a distraction to my students. According to our school policy, it is forbidden, but realistically, students will use it if they can access it. One of my students is clever enough to use a Facebook iGoogle gadget, so it's not quite as obvious that he is on Facebook. This semester, I have my own classroom instead of a shared computer lab, and I have toyed with the idea of blocking Facebook on my computers. While I would like my students to learn to make the right choice and stay on task, I know it won't happen. Most of them go to this school because they are really good at making bad choices. On the other end of the spectrum, I have also been thinking that maybe I should embrace Facebook, and have my students create a World History page on Facebook. I am having a hard time imagining how I would get them to buy in to this project, and I am guessing many of my students would abuse this, using it as an excuse to chat with friends and such.
Blocking blogging and wikis is ridiculous. Students need to learn about collaborative tools. I understand students need to be protected, but they will need to learn how to protect themselves once they are adults, and schools can't teach that to them without being able to access Web 2.0 tools.
The one thing that I wish my school blocked is pornography. It is not as much of an issue as might be expected, but I have caught some students viewing obscene content. Last year, three students were caught (we only have about 30 students in the school so that is actually a lot), but this year no one has been caught viewing pornography. That, of course, does not mean it hasn't happened. If I can figure out how to block obscene content on my classroom computers I will, but I'm not willing to give up access to Web 2.0 tools with educational value.
Dan, again we agree, so much time and energy to block material could be reallocated for much better tasks. After reviewing New Hampshire requirements for Internet access in schools I was surprised that it basically consists of acceptable use policy and unacceptable use. It is nice to know that some schools have opened the toolbox without any major issues. It is also interesting that your school does not utilize filters to block inappropriate images which I understood to be a federal requirement associated with e-rate/federal funding. The federal requirement under the Children’s Internet Protect Act requires filters for minors using (library) computers but, users of age can request the librarian remove the filters so that the patron can access pornography. I can envision that those requests can present a whole new set of issues; like privacy filters for library monitors and maybe earphones for video pornography? After all if the patron can see and hear it, couldn’t a minor? Just a thought……
ReplyDeleteI am not all that familiar with the Children Internet Protection Act, but I thought it only pertained to institutions that receive federal funding for technology expenses. In any case, I do wish our school would block this material. I think it is merely a matter of technical know-how that prevents us from doing so. I will have to look into it.
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