Censorship In My School?
I am in my senior year and I fear for the future of my high school. A couple months ago I did a survey on internet accessibility on our school computers. These were the questions asked:
Do certain subjects blocked by the school make it difficult for research or projects? (ex: “sex” or “alcohol” or “cigarettes” for health “gay marriage” for sociology or a class debate)
76 students – 71 students said yes 5 said no
Do you feel that certain subjects, words, or websites are unnecessarily/unfairly blocked? (ex: sword, horror)
74 said yes 2 said no
List certain sites, or things on Google search you wish weren’t blocked on school computers:
Health class
9 said specifically it interfered with Health research. (drugs, STD’s)
Art students
7- want Deviant Art unblocked, good resource for them
History, Criminal Justice, WWII 11 students
Subjects blocked: prostitution, murder investigation
Do you find it a violation of privacy that the library watches what you do on the computer?
Violation of privacy 55 said it was a violation. 21 said no or didn’t care.
So you see, I have to do something about it. The question is? What can I do? And yes the words I mentioned as examples are actually blocked its ridiculous.
This survey was 76 students chosen at random. All different grades. 9, 10, 11, and 12th grade.
Other words blocked: anarchy, dating, and other silly words. The government tells our school library to block certain things or else they will not give our library money. How unfair is that?
Legally, as a student at a public high school, you do not have the rights that you are claiming. You are a citizen of the US and have some civil rights, but you do not get the full range of civil rights until you reach your majority.
The GOVERNMENT is not blocking what can be searched at your school, the local school board, principal is doing that.
You have no unlimited right to look at anything you desire, you are restricted from going to x rated movies, you are restricted from going to bars, you are restricted from being out after a certain time, you are restricted from purchasing legal goods(tobacco, alcohol, pornography, etc).
If you want to “do research”, then open up a book in the library, it is much more reliable than the vast majority of internet sites.
Finally, your “poll” is irrelevant. I could go to the local high school and ask 100 boys if porn should be allowed to be searched at the high school library and they would all say “Yes”, the results of a poll have no impact on your supposed rights. Only the results of an election can impact your rights.
whale
you said, “The government tells our school library to block certain things or else they will not give our library money”
can you prove that?
this is a form of censorship. i would write a letter to your superintendent and state your issues. start a petition. but you could also look up some of those things in history books. they are usually more reliable.
censorship is allowed in schools
The government is NOT telling the schools what to censor or they will lose money. That is a 100% LIE.
Local school boards decide what they will or will not censor. Library money comes from LOCAL taxpayers, not federal money anyway.
You have no right to privacy at school.
We certainly don’t want 9-12th graders deciding how to run the schools.
Nothing you have said is illegal, it may somehow interfere with education to some degree, but it is not illegal, or unethical for that matter. And usually it is not the government, but many times it is the School Board, the Superintendent, the PTA, etc…
sounds unfair especially if they want you to do a paper on these subjects. you need to talk to your school principle and if that does not work talk to the board of education. you have to go up the ladder.
You kids need to learn how to do “real” research that is not censored and it’s contained in your library. Stop counting on terrible internet sources for all your answers.
Shouldn’t you be in school studying and not on yahoo answers?
The problem is that most of the words mentioned have been misused by some students or are believed to cause problems. Invasion of your privacy or freedom of expression would e violated if they blocked them on your personal computer but schools are public access and have a different level applied; the same is true of work computers at a business. School is your business and the school board can have things blocked they wish too their; I think you will find much more blocked when you start working and have access to a work computer. All research is not to be done at school so researching some of those subjects can be done after school. Do I think the list is good and agree with everything you listed is No but that was the decision of the school board that controls the funding. You have a right of privacy in private but not using a public computer so that really is a non-issue. You unlock drugs and some bright student will look up how to make meth-Yes it is on the internet. It will be more fair but more dangerous to let children to use the internet without restraint or supervision of a public (school owned) system and could place the school system in a legally tenuous position-I look up how to make explosives from an anarchy site (Yes that exists also) and make a bomb killing some other students I did it on the school computer some one would file a liability suit against the school for allowing me to do it.
Apparently there is a conflict between what is asked for by teachers and what is available in schools for students to do meaningful research. Has school curriculum been so perverted by secularism that what is being asked for is inappropriate? I don’t know. I do know that certain material is inappropriate for certain age groups and some material is inappropriate for any age group. It’s a difficult task, some innocent words link into some very inappropriate material. I assume any blocking of sites is thought to be in the best interest of the student and the school. I don’t know what the answer is, perhaps the blocking and unblocking on a case by case basis. Be aware though, trouble makers abound even within your midst, evil even within ourselves. If you, as a student of censorship, want to witness some serious censorship, keep your eyes upon and your mind open to what’s going to happen in the coming months and years under the current political administration. I think you will get a real lesson in censorship.
Yes, it’s censorship, but, most of you at school are minors and in public school on top of that. You simply do NOT have the same Constitutional protections that adults do. Your school paper can be censored, lockers entered without a warrant, etc.
And you’re not going to have those protections, either. Protection of you and those that go to school with you supercede your personal rights. Because most teenagers lack common sense and/or emotional control, it’s better to limit what you can and can’t do in those formative years than allow teens to use school computers to bully one another….or build pipe bombs.
Your perspective will change when you have your own kids in HS.