Each year, I "celebrate" Banned Books Week by pointing out all the banned books which sit on my classroom bookshelves, discussing the ones which you have already read, and the classics you will be assigned to read. Therefore, when I came across this article in The New York Times: A Call for Opening Up Web Access at Schools, I was intrigued. Is the practice of blocking certain websites in schools synonymous with banning books?
The rules for commenting on this post:
Read the article first. Find some interesting sentence or section of the article and format your comment around that part. Quote it! Read comments posted by previous students. Then, either comment on something original or refer to another student's comment and add your own spin. Please do not repeat the same mantra over and over again.
Although it can be risky, I think that banning websites/books is limiting knowledge. You may not know what you're coming across, but it's preventing students from learning. If I was curious about something and there were books/websites banned about it, I would be mad that my school wasn't giving me the access of knowledge that I desire. Some kids could take advantage of this, but it's still a good idea to try out. This post reminded me of the restricted section at the library in Hogwarts. :)
ReplyDeleteTara Bagherlee
Period 5
I HATE the restrictions on school computers, and I strongly agree that they inhibit research. Plenty of times in debate last year, the school laptops were useless not only because they are obsolete but also because they prevented access to a vast array of information. Want to research gay rights? DENIED. Why? "Pornography/ Sexual Content." It was a teen health website. (Who's dumb enough to try to look up pornography in school anyway?) Gun rights? DENIED. "Weapons/Violence." So many opinion blogs got blocked because of that.
ReplyDeleteI can understand if the school system wants to ban specific sites, but by passing all websites through a web filter they are essentially blocking out entire chunks of the web, while some "dangerous" websites slip through.
I disagree with the article. I do think that some websites should probably be blocked. Computers provide enough distractions already without Facebook. I don't mind YouTube being blocked either, although it does become annoying when your teacher wanted to show a cool video and can't. The students in the article sound kind of pathetic when they say that they can't go the whole day without Facebook.
I think it's best if maybe the schools treat knowledge on the webs like librarians treat books. If you ask a librarian to check out a book for you, they can't look at you and say "I don't think this book is appropriate for you." They're kind of required to check the book out for you. Same goes for computers. Why have them if you won't let people use them for what they are intended for?
I definitely think that certain restrictions are good for the school because it would be too tempting for the students to use the computers for social reasons. For example, instead of working on a group project, in class, they would be checking their status on facebook or tweeting on twitter. Then, the students wouldn't be learning as well as they could.
ReplyDeleteSammi Staropoli
period 5
"It just got to the point that it became hard to conduct research." This has happened to me several times. One example was when I was doing a history project on The Cuban Missile Crisis. The computer at school denied me access to some websites because there were weapons. I had to wait until I got home to go on these same sites that were fine and wasted my time at school. I don't think there should be a ban on websites at school.
ReplyDeleteTrace Wolf
Period#4
The paragraph of the article I want to comment on is, "In his Advanced Placement Biology class, where lab groups have created a Facebook thread to collaborate and share data, he could not log in. In honors comparative literature, his classmates were unable to show a YouTube video during a presentation." It shows a very valid point. Although some kids might abuse their computer privelages, a lot of kids would use it for educational purposes. For example, in debate we have a facebook page which everybody says is very helpful snd has a lot of information, however, (thanks to the ban) it can't be accesssed from school.
ReplyDelete“It’s really has become an integral part of education.” This is what Michael said about the Internet. Why should they block websites with innapropriate content, when you could go to the school library and get it there. Also, teachers use the Internet as a big part of their learning (cough, cough Mrs. Powers). Once, I could log onto my teachers website because it said the content was blocked because it was a blog. There are many more examples but that is jsut one. Also, I think the school is overseeing some major innapropriate sites, while they're blocking some of the educational websites instead. One example is Tumblr.
ReplyDeleteLauren Adler
Period #2
The problem with using a web filter to ban websites is that a ton of educational websites would get blocked when talking about specific maybe inappropriate things. I find it reasonable to delete some websites but to many sites are taken off for no reason.
ReplyDeleteJake Steirn
Period 1
I believe that the school should ban certain websites (ex. Facebook, Twitter, You Tube) because no student should be on those sites for "research." I think that the school should allow some trust in students when it comes to certain things that are actually educational. I have found (along with many others) that I find it difficult to do research on school computers due to the wide variety of banned websites that could actually help me.
ReplyDeleteIsabella Bishop
Per. 3
I think schools should ban websites such as facebook, twitter, and youtube. Students will want to go on this websites during school. I'm sure any student would rather be on facebook than work on a project. In my opinion, these websites do not benefit students educationally.
ReplyDeleteEmily Chaiet
Period 4
I personally find most of the online websites that schools offer usually become useless anyway. There is so much potential we can get off the internet, but instead, we waste it. Those safe educational websites that aren't blocked usually are so boring I regret showing up to school. Social networking sites are really useless since we have no need to communicate anyways (It's not like my 4:00 meeting with my foreign business partners can wait, though). Youtube should be allowed but with user discretion. I utilize youtube to play songs over and over until I feel they are truly good enough to buy. Music off youtube can be beneficial. Music can stimulate success. I blast my favorite songs when attempting to study (The key word is attempting) just as Michael Phelps plays music right before going to swim in a big meet. For everything else, let it be user discretion. The internet was made like a big city. There are the good people who live out their daily lives the good way, and those who choose to walk the dark alleys. The choice is up to us. Also, I think schools should only let teachers have a clear history option, so faculty and teachers can figure out who is doing wrong and punishing from there.
ReplyDeleteJake Ukleja
I think it is absolutely fine to ban websites-to a certain extent. I agree with Cat when she says it is ridiculous for a Teen health website to be blocked, what if some guy or girl needs to do research, or learn something that could help them on in life. Some kids prefer to consult the web about certain…um…topics that they rather not ask an adult. I do NOT want to go up to a guidance councilor, or a science teacher to ask him about STDs. Name one kid who wants to ask his parents about the symptoms of Chlamydia. The web is like an online library everything is constantly updated, and I have an unlimited pool of information. It is like putting up a restricted section in a library. If I need a book, then by all that is good, I will get it. I can understand putting up filters in elementary (we don’t need mentally scarred children) but come on, were as far from innocent as possible. Granted, by cutting out certain websites like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, it could prevent non-studious students from being distracted. I can also name plenty of people (unfortunately Cat) who would look at porn at school. Don’t ask me why, I just think they would. BUT I also know plenty of others who would use it as a way to learn. I would have loved to be able to insert a YouTube video into my Gmail PPTs. I despised having to do all the research for my History Fair project as home because all of the LGTB websites were marked as "Pornography/ Sexual Content." I think the school board should maybe make the filters less black and white. Just because it talks about sex, doesn’t make it a pornographic website, or if it has information on Fat Man and Little Boy it doesn’t mean it is a “weapons” website. Maybe the filters should focus on the sources than the content. If it comes from a valid and trustworthy source, it is not likely to have inappropriate material.
ReplyDeleteEx alumni
Camilo B.
Previous Period 3
He he he. The way Camilo phrased things, can make a couple of things pretty misleading.
ReplyDelete