Article Review #6 "Filtering Software: The Educators Speak Out"

In the article "Filtering Software: The Educators Speak Out," Linda Starr compiled a sequence of responses on school filtering software from educators around the country. Filtering technology came into play in schools as a result of the Children's Internet Protection Act of 1999. Many different viewpoints were presented in the article but the majority of the educators believed that filtering software was necessary to protect students from obscene and potentially harmful material on the Internet. In addition, filtering provides some protection for educators when dealing with parental expectations for students. On the other hand, some educators view the software as a hassle and in one instance a form of censorship. My opinion on filtering software is in line with the majority of educators responding in the article. I do not want the responsibility of trying to make sure that none of my students are visiting inappropriate sites. In an ideal world, we wouldn't have to worry about students doing this because they know it would be wrong. But as educators, we need to be realistic. I like the idea presented in the article of giving our students their own sense of filtering by discussing appropriate Internet etiquette with them. However, knowing that the filtering software is in place is reassuring for me personally.