Privacy and freedom are two concepts that seem to stem off one another much more frequently than one might expect. For instance, many parents give their children the privacy of their own bedrooms, but usually do not allow their child the freedom to have anyone they please in their room. It is a similar concept when it comes to school-issued computers. Students have been granted privacy by having personal computers, and have also been given the freedom to use their computers for leisure in addition to schoolwork: their primary function.

So is a teacher’s ability to use screen monitoring services, such as MyVision, at any given point during the school day justified? Some students say they find it to be an invasion of privacy, while another student, Isabel Crowther ’17, says that “It doesn’t really make sense for teachers to use MyVision during study halls because that’s [the students’] time, and if we don’t get work done during them it’s our own fault.” However, the point of study halls and frees is to give students time in school to complete their work. The teachers’ concern is that students who do not complete work during free time in school might not complete it during free time after school, either. In order to combat students who avoid the completion of their work, a teacher can remove some of the freedom they have to do so by using MyVision.

Still, it can be difficult to pinpoint just how much freedom students should be given in regard to laptop use. Erica Rodi ’17 says, “We are given a lot of freedom—unless a student is in study hall and a teacher monitors their screen, then I could see people feeling bad about MyVision.” The complication that presents itself here is that teachers expect students to be productive and focused on school work during their study halls, so it makes sense that they would use MyVision to maintain a productive environment. While presenting students with too much freedom could distract from the original purpose of the 1:1 Program, which is to enhance the learning experience at Wilmington Friends, giving students too little freedom could discourage them from using their laptops at all.

It seems the line between educational uses and personal entertainment is blurred. Subliminally, all students know that they should complete their schoolwork before using their computers for other purposes; however, a feeling common to all students, and perhaps teachers, is an overwhelming desire to do, well, nothing (that is, nothing related to school). This leaves the question: when is this appropriate, if it even is at all? Obviously, it is not acceptable during class, but what about during study halls or frees? Alyssa Nathan ’17 recognizes that MyVision can be “Good to have for testing, because people could be tempted to cheat without it,” but to many others it seems unnecessary to use the application during class time or free periods, including study halls, where students are trusted to maintain integrity.

Teachers who do choose to use the program during regular class time endorse it, as Mary Woodward states: “When the software works smoothly, it can be helpful to make sure kids stay on task while working independently.” This becomes a thought provoking stance when seen in contrast with an anonymous statement that, “As a whole, MyVision is used more as a threat. It’s almost like teachers saying, ‘if you do something bad, we will see it.’” Regardless, the exact purpose of MyVision is to give teachers the ability to monitor their students’ activities and give consequences if they are necessary. Thus, keeping students on task with their work in class.

At Friends, students have the freedom to use their computers for leisure, but they also have responsibilities as students. MyVision helps to ensure that students do put their schoolwork first. As Jeffrey McAbee ’18 puts it, “MyVision is academically valuable, because it can prevent us [students] from wandering.” Students are granted so much freedom in their laptop usage, such as the privilege to keep personal items like music and photos on the school-issued computers, that it almost seems unfair to suggest that they cannot be monitored by faculty during the school day. All in all, students come to school to learn, and the primary goal of the 1:1 Program is to heighten this experience.