Tech Censorship or Safety?

The School’s Tech Office has apparently been on a rave, blocking and restricting an increasing number of websites the past few years. But is that really the case?

Ethan Beal, a senior at the School, created his Youtube channel in middle school to post educational videos for classes. Over the years, Ethan posted several “sentimental” videos of school trips. 

“Me and one of my friends made videos about school field trips,” Ethan said.

When all Youtube accounts were destroyed, Ethan lost everything. “We thought Youtube was a safe place to keep those memories,” Ethan said. 

All of those middle school memories were completely wiped when the School apparently restricted content creation.

“I lost all my videos… for no reason at all,” Ethan exclaimed. 

Other students have also voiced irritation about website blocking. One sophomore said, “Why would they block Chess.com? It just doesn’t make sense.” 

Dave Levin, Director of Technology, clarified all the misinformation about how and why websites are blocked. 

“The Youtube one wasn’t by the School, it was by Google,” Levin said.

He further added, “We put students at the center… It’s a complicated endeavor [to regulate websites].”

There is frustration regarding the undefined line between internet use for educational purposes and what becomes a distraction for students.

For example, “video games are a gray area,” said Levin.

Levin went on, “Some students might play video games during a free block, but some might play while the teacher is giving a lesson. The School has a firewall that blocks video games and explicit videos and sites, but Google does the “[vast majority] of censoring.”

While some students find this censorship “stupid,” “extra,” and ridiculous,” teachers find it important as it increases student engagement in class.

Levin commented that “teachers [and even parents] have said Youtube was causing horrendous problems in class.”

The School can “unblock legitimate websites,” and Levin concluded, “We want your help as a student… [we] welcome emails from students to unblock websites.”