Tracking of personal information leads to stricter filtering
By Rowan Brown, SHS Junior
A recent privacy lawsuit involving Google has resulted in some websites—most notably YouTube—being restricted on school-provided laptops. This limitation has left students without access to major educational tools. Many classes such as TV Production, U.S. History, and Chemistry rely on YouTube as part of their curriculum. “It’s not benefiting Students” says Mr. Happoldt, a SHS teacher whose classes have been affected by the ban. Drew Clayson, a SHS sophomore in TV Production, says “I hate it. I can’t get any sounds or songs for my video projects.” Many students critique the ban, not knowing why it is restricted in the first place.
This restriction runs deeper than district policy; it’s part of a regional decision to protect students’ personally identifiable information (PII). Google broke a contract with multiple states by tracking student PII. Although Salamanca uses Microsoft as our primary platform, The WNYRICS (which manages content filtering for most school districts in Western NY) blocked YouTube for all its districts.
“Will YouTube ever be fully open again on our network, I doubt it.” says Mrs. Brown, head of the SHS tech department. Since the ban is regulated by WNYRICS, it's less likely that it will be lifted any time soon. For now, teachers still have access to YouTube and can play videos in class. As for students, the tech department is creating an online library of educational videos available for students' use.