Student Privacy

When trying to protect property and school safety, schools should prioritize students’ privacy above everything else. Schools want to protect their property such as student-issued laptops, but they cannot do this if it infringes on the students’ rights of privacy. Students never should have to worry about being watched or being on surveillance in places like a bathroom, locker room or their own homes. This was exactly the opposite of the situation described in the article School District’s Webcam Surveillance Focus of Suit by Martha T. Moore of USA Today. In this article, Lower Merion High School, Hariton High School and others surrounding area schools are being sued by parents of students whose privacy was violated. The article highlights student Katarina …show more content…
The laptop that had been issued to Katarina had anti-theft security installed on it to begin snapping pictures when a laptop was reported as missing or stolen. According to the article however, students and parents were not even aware of this capability of the computers, “The policy doesn’t mention the school’s ability to use the webcams, theft-tracking devices that were supposed to be turned on if laptops were reported missing or stolen.” (Moore 2). The school did not do a secure enough job of ensuring that the students’ privacy rights would be intact, and they also did not do a satisfactory job of writing their policy and informing their parents and students, and this cannot happen. In the article, American Civil Liberties Union Representative Mary Catherin Roper said, “What we’ve seen is a program that was set up without the thought and protection for student privacy that were obviously required.” (Moore 2). Before schools think about ensuring that their property is safe, they need to focus on something much more valuable, students’ privacy. If a student cannot be positive that he has privacy at his school or even his own home, then the school system if