There is nothing more frustrating than having your educational research at school being blocked or hindered by a filter. The school filter has done more harm than good by limiting a student’s ability to successfully complete a project or assignment. Because administration believes that students will browse social media or play games on the computers, certain useful websites such as Huffington Post and a number of other news and magazine sites are blocked. Websites with controversial “key words” relating to subjects not “appropriate” for school are blocked.
An example of how the school filter is harming education is how multiple students in an English class were doing their project on the effects of sexual harassment and assault. They were unable to conduct any research at school because the filter prevented them from accessing any websites because of the “key word” sex, or rape. Because every website associated with the words rape or sex are blocked, the students were unable to successfully complete their assignment at school. Also, students who are not able to afford a computer or do not have internet at home have no option other than to use a school computer with the filter in place. They are limited to a certain amount of information allowed by the filter while other students who are able to afford a computer of their own are able to travel home and have an unlimited amount of information because the filter is not in place.
If a teacher believes that their students would search the words sex or rape as a joke and unrelated to school, they should not be allowing their students onto a computer in the first place. It should be up to the teacher to decide whether their students are mature enough to handle a computer responsibly. If the teacher decided that their students are not responsible, they can prevent them from using a computer. This allows students who are able to use a computer responsibly to use the internet filter free and having unlimited access to information to improve their learning and educational experience.
A majority of the students in high school own a cell phone with data, or access to the internet. With signal, they are able to search anything on their phone through their data and not the school wifi, allowing them to not be limited by the filter. Why have a filter when most students can get around it with cell phone usage? High schools should eliminate the school internet filter allowing students to use useful websites that can help them with assignments, projects and improving their overall education.
