Kids across America today are being tracked more than ever by cameras and phone applications. In interviews around Triton, some students said they feel it’s a violation of their privacy and shows a lack of trust in them.
“I hate it, I think it’s an invasion of privacy, I’m being tracked every second of my life,” said student Riley Dinsmore, who expressed her opinions on the phone-tracking phone app, Life 360.
Research from StudyFinds.org, a website that publishes scientific research, the average person in the US is recorded by a camera 238 times weekly. Some find this a privacy issue and get an anxious feeling knowing they are being watched. A separate study by camera and monitoring software company Reolink finds that the average human is being watched 70 times a day in public spaces.
At the same time, the phone application Life 360, allows users to see where those in their family are at any one point in time, has over 2.4 million downloads and has earned a 4.8/5 rating by users.
Having so many cameras and the tracking ability affects the growth of children beyond safety. Some studies find that constant monitoring can lead to anxiety.
Some parents who use Life 360 have a different point of view. Special Education teacher Mrs. Caitlin Rio spoke about how she uses it with her son.
“He is unable to lie about his whereabouts because when I ask, he can’t lie because I know,” said Rio. “It will notify me when he leaves and arrives. It sends me an alert to my phone.”
Parents may have apps that track their children such as with Life360 or “Find My” phone on their phone that can track you and the location you’re in to make sure students are safe or is it more of an invasion in privacy.
Principal Patrick Kelley said that at Triton, there are cameras around the building that monitor through what is called the Raptor system. This system allows for dozens of camera angles around the building, inside and out. Administrators use this system to monitor for safety and risky behaviors.
“We’re going back to look at them after the fact (of an incident),” said Kelley. “In the case of someone being injured or catching people just like seeing if something’s wrong we frequently are able to figure out what happened by using the video camera.”
Having cameras is a safety precaution within the community, Kelley said, adding that they are useful in protecting the students. Triton’s Raptor system, which includes over 50 cameras on campus, are safety precautions, Kelley explained.
