Fixing Internet Censorship In Schools

jcatcw writes "Schools and libraries are hurting students by setting up heavy-handed Web filtering. The problem goes back for years. A filter blocked the Web site of former House Majority Leader Richard Armey because it detected the word 'dick,' according to a 2001 study from the Brennan Center of Justice. The purpose of schools should be to teach students to live in a democratic society, and that means teaching critical thinking and showing students controversial Web sites, says Craig Cunningham, a professor at National-Louis University. He quoted from a National Research Council study: 'Swimming pools can be dangerous for children. To protect them, one can install locks ... [or] teach them to swim.' Web filtering also leads to inequities in education based on household income. Students from more affluent areas have access to the Internet at home and, often, more enlightened parents who can let them access information blocked in schools and libraries. Poorer students without home access don't have those opportunities."

Comments

Re:Webfilters, a great motivator!

[BitZtream]

Just because you and a couple other people who are above the mildly retarded rating figured out how easy it was to get around a few filters doesn't mean the majority of the students will.

Heres a better idea, how about teaching your kid that occasionally he/she has to follow the fucking rules, like it or not rather than going along and letting them think they should get their way all the freaking time.

Re:Critical thinking

[BitZtream]

Aren't you witty and complex ... this most certainly backs up your conspiracy theory, whatever retarded one it is this week, I'm sure the government is out to get you and this is obviously proof!

Dear morons, not everything is censorship.

[BitZtream]

Stop fucking calling it that.

There is a time and place for everything, and random browsing of whatever you want is not something that you do at school.

If you think keeping students focused on school work and not dicking off reading slashdot, digg, or screwing with facebook is censorship then you are, in fact, a freaking moron.

Stop calling everything censorship just because you don't get your way.

There was a time when saying something was censored meant something, now it just means some douche bag on the Internet could spout his mouth off or do whatever he/she wanted to someone else.

When you run into someones house and call them a cock sucking faggot and then you get your ass beat by him and his boyfriend, you didn't get censored, you get your ass beat for being a fucking moron, and thats exactly what this is.

Re:It's completely pointless.

[BitZtream]

This would be in all caps if the filter didn't stop me ...

WHY THE FUCK DOES YOUR SCHOOL KID NEED A CELL PHONE?!

Thats right, he/she doesn't, and thats how you block facebook on the phone. Why the fuck are parents letting their children go to school with fucking phones? They don't actually have any reason to need to be that contactable.

Heck when I was in high school I had a teacher use a wireless air card to get onto youtube since the district tech staff were blocking so many websites for no reason whatsoever.

So you just got out of school ... let me how tell you how high I rank the opinion of a school kid telling me about how it should be for school kids ... You might want to leave that part out next time.