Being a student during the age of technology has its perks.
Students are able to look up information in seconds, communicate with people from across the world, and even carry all their textbooks in a computer.
However, while technology appears to be private to students when they bring their technology into school, it is not.
According to the New Trier Student Guidebook for the 2014-2015 school year, students are prohibited from downloading unauthorized software, using the schools network for commercial or private financial gain, hacking unauthorized files, intentionally invading the privacy of others, and posting anonymous messages.
Students may not intentionally access, submit, post, or publish inaccurate, abusive, and obscene material. These are only a few of the rules outlined in the New Trier Student Guidebook. Punishment for these offenses range from revoking a student’s mobile device to suspension.
The school not only reserves the right to limit what students can and cannot do on personal devices, but they also can see and look through them.
Christopher Johnson, New Trier’s Chief Information Officer said, “The school monitors some use and logs it for investigative purposes. Some data is also logged as part of normal network operations. Access is restricted to select Technology Department employees, and there are guidelines in place about when we access this information.”
Johnson also explained that the school can have access to every student account issued by the school. This includes student’s school issued email, hard drive, and google docs account if necessary.
The school also has the power to view a student’s internet history when using the school provided computers. “New Trier is able to deploy contents to iPads, and see information about the iPad specifications, such as how much storage a student has left and what IOS version they are using,” said Johnson. “We cannot view the contents of student’s phones, but we can see what they send and receive when they send or received over the school’s network.”
According to the Student Guidebook, a condition of using the school’s internet is the user’s consent to the monitoring and inspection by school administrators of a school device or personal device on school grounds.
However, according to Johnson, the school cannot discover anything on a student’s personal device once outside of school or off the school’s network.
“If it is a student-owned device, we cannot discipline them for their
use of it outside of school. That said, if they bring the device into school, it must comply with our school rules outlined in the student guidebook. It is important for the school to maintain a safe educational environment for students.”
These rules have been enforced this year, and the school has followed them to a tee.
Because every student has an iPad, numerous instances have already occured in which students iPads were taken.
“The school follows all relevant laws when it comes to the monitoring of devices,” said Johnson. “Our philosophy in how we monitor and support students is to balance the independence they must have in the future with what is appropriate for a school environment and their age.”