Monday, July 05, 2004

Johnny, Hold Out Your Hand

In times prior, when a teacher asked a student to hold out their hand, it probably meant that the student was about to receive a rap on the knuckles for some type of disruptive behavior.  Those knuckle raps could sting.  My how times have changed.

"When teachers take attendance at a new middle school next month, they won’t need a notebook or even a piece of paper.

They can depend on biometric hand readers to do the job.

The little black boxes, which take less than a second to identify students based on the dimensions of their hands, will be placed in all 61 classrooms, the cafeteria, main office and media center at Don Estridge High Tech Middle School, which will open Aug. 11 at Spanish River Boulevard and Military Trail."

Of course, this new method of student control is for their own safety, rather than a cover for the ineptness of the educators.

"Don Estridge Principal Debra Johnson said she sees the hand readers as a time-saver as much as a security measure. Teachers spend precious minutes each morning taking attendance. And she said she has spent many hours on the phone with parents whose children did not get off the bus on schedule. With the hand readers, the school will know if they got on the bus and where they got off, she said.

“We’ll be able to say, `Johnny got off the bus at 10th and Dixie,’ and the parent will say, `Oh, that’s where my aunt lives,’” she said."

I guess it’s not just Santa Claus and God who want know what you’re doing, and where you are, each and every moment.

“Hand scanners to keep tabs on students at Boca middle school."

Posted by John Venlet on 07/05 at 01:29 PM
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