If you’ve ever used a school computer to access the Internet, you’ve probably realized that the school filters the Internet. The school district doesn’t do this because the adults in charge enjoy denying students access to certain parts of the web, but rather because “schools that receive Federal e-Rate funding are required by law to block sites that are determined to be inappropriate by the Child Internet Protection Act,” according to Michael Walker, the district secondary technology integration specialist.
While the school’s filtering blocks sites that are undeniably inappropriate and harmful, like porn sites, the filter also blocks some completely innocuous sites, like the popular webcomic Penny Arcade. Also caught in the net are some legitimately educational searches. Students researching queer theory, a literary theory concerning gender identity in literature, in English teacher Jessica Froehlich’s class were surprised to learn that they could not find anything meaningful on the topic because the school blocked all related web searches under the category “GPORN.” Since when is something as dry and boring as literary theory considered porn?
When asked what to do when a legitimate search cannot be completed at school, Mr. Walker said, “In this case, we may ask you to complete that search outside of school.” Theoretically, that’s a good option, but not when you have a group presentation the next day and need to research with other group members.
Sites always can be unblocked, Mr. Walker explained, saying “students can contact their media center and put in a request.” That, however, will of course take time, and then it may be simpler for the student to wait until they get home after all.
For users on the district’s WiFi network, going to a blocked site leads to a page explaining why the site is blocked and giving users the opportunity to log in on their school accounts to authenticate. On the wired network, a blocked site displays a similar page, but with the option to log in as a different user. What the page is lacking, however, is a description of what to do. It informs students to contact the building’s media staff, but provides no link or instructions on how to do that.
Problems with the filtering system boil down to two main categories: collateral damage as legitimate content is filtered and a lack of communication. The collateral damage associated with web filtering is inevitable, but can be better managed, especially by improving the second category: communication. The splash page for blocked content should be modified to provide more information, from an explanation of why the particular category of web page is blocked to a guide to how to get the site unblocked to a comprehensive (and prominently available) explanation of the school’s web filtering system.