Journal #9 (Journal 6 requirement)

The Threat of Security: Hindering Technology Integration in the Classroom
by LeAnne K. Robinson, Abbie Brown, and Tim Green (Learning & Leading with Technology, Sept/Oct 2007)

The issues surrounding security and technology within schools are very real and also very complex. On the one hand, you have the administrators who are concerned (rightfully so) with lawsuits, and thus often have many restrictions in place to safeguard against internet security problems within the schools. On the other hand, you have teachers who are feeling stifled with the increasing security measures being put in place.

This article discusses how supposed security threats are hindering or even eliminating, in some cases, the implementation of technology in schools. There must be a balance stuck between security and the right to learn. Threats must be put into perspective. While security of children's identities online is paramount, basic security education taught to students about online safety should be the first focus, not the increasing amount of filters and other blocks used to keep students safe. A vigilant teacher and an insistence that online safety rules be used constantly by students should take care of many of the concerns of administrators. However, school districts continue to implement ever tightening regulations on technology use in schools.

1. How can a teacher use technology effectively in a classroom if filters, etc., deter her from basic technological operations? This will probably have to be a grass-roots effort on the part of teachers. I did read another article that discussed the great need for administrators to be more educated about technology in education, too; where there is knowledge, there is less fear.

2. Is the comment in the article about how "teachers are forbidden to use their own resources to create a class-related site....is the equivalent of saying they cannot use their own money to buy pencils and markers, or that they cannot purchase bulletin board materials on their own" a strong argument? I think this is a poor arguement. These are the kind of arguments that will get us nowhere fast when trying to prove a point. The problem is access by the public. The world is not allowed to flow past a teacher's bulletin board as it can one's classroom website.