Sunday, October 21, 2007

Are You Being Watched?





England is all a flutter these days about a new technology that's being considered for use in the country's secondary schools.

Seems microchips are being embedded into school uniforms so that students can be tracked--their every movement monitored by school computers. Take one step off campus and alarm bells will go off. Teachers will even be alerted if a student just seems LIKELY to misbehave. Right now the system is still being tested, but one day it could be a reality for millions of kids. (Read more here.)

In the US, some schools are taking equally controversial steps that include fingerprinting students and imposing dress codes so strict that you can be punished for wearing a Winnie the Pooh sweatshirt.

Unfortunately, in both Britain and the US, school kids don't have the same rights as adults. A doctrine called "in loco parentis" allows educational facilities to assume the responsibilities of parents during school hours. That means while you're in school, the Constitution (which ensures the right to free speech, among other things) does not protect YOU.

Somehow that doesn't seem quite fair.

16 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Scary!!!! I'm soooooo lucky that my school doesn't have to wear uniforms!!!

12:11 PM  
Blogger Spring said...

I'm glad I'm home-schooled! My parents probably wouldn't do that to me, and I don't have a dress code. LOL.

12:22 PM  
Blogger International Mastermind said...

Wait a minute...I AM OWNED BY MY TEACHERS!!! (from 7:30 - 2:06)

At least I don't have to wear a uniform.
But I think I may have to change the rules a bit...

5:10 PM  
Blogger International Mastermind said...

Shall I protest with my underwear?

5:11 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

You've outdone yourself yet again.

5:15 PM  
Blogger International Mastermind said...

I should probably stop-my mom says that I soon will be as, uh, "funny" as my dad. Oh no.

And I am probably getting annoying. But I really don't try, I just say stuff like that. (but the above fit SO perfectly!)

7:45 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Don't stop! Very few people on earth are naturally funny.

7:47 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

HELLO ANAKA
I AM A HUGE FAN OF YOU. YOU ARE, SHALL I USE A CLICHE TO END ALL CLICHES, AMAZING. YOU ARE CLEVER, AND RATHER FUNNY I AM A BIT INSANE, I LIKE TO WEAR SCHOOL UNIFORMS EVEN THOUGH MY SCHOOL DOESN'T HAVE THEM But now im freaked out
GINNYWEASLEY007
7TH GRADER AT EVIL SCHOOL

12:00 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

WOW that is soooooooooooooo scary!!!!!!!!! I'm with you Spring!!

10:31 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

By the way, GinnyWeasley007 is a fabulous name. Love it!

7:48 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

thanks ananka i'm almost as obsessed with harry potter as I am your books, but yours are better!

11:27 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

omg! ginny weasley person! I'm obsessed too!
Like i said on another posting: I MISS FRED! who doesn't like a guy who's hilarious and has red hair.*scoff* I mean seriously! weirdos. I could write a novel on my love for fred. That's probably a bad idea, cuz then i would be classified as insane and we wouldn't want that, would we? ha ha ha. (don't fear me, i'm just a bit of an enthusiast.) kiki strike obsessive:)
o ya, i wear a uniform too!

7:23 PM  
Blogger International Mastermind said...

I LOVE Harry Potter, books, movies, stuff!

*sobs* I miss Fred too! I have a poster of the Weasley twins and Ron in my room. *Runs off crying*

6:22 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

OMG!!!!!!! DARE THEY DO THAT TO US!!!!!!(I wonder if small cuts in clothing are bad?)

6:44 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

unfortunatly i wear uniforms. fortunatley there arent micro chips embeded into them.
unfortunatley i dont live in great britain.
fortunatly i am reading a hilarious book "angus, thongs and fullfrontal snogging"
about a girl who goes to a secondary school in england ;)

10:20 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

omg!!!!!!!!!!! they have those stickers every where at my school!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!11

3:56 PM  

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