Security Cameras in Classrooms: The Debate Continues
This article was written originally for MultiBriefs Education . My New Hampshire suburban high school, home to some 800 students and staff, is not unlike many high schools from coast to coast that has, in recent years, received a variety of security upgrades including the expansion of our video surveillance network. What once was a limited system with just ten cameras pointed in the most high-traffic parts of the campus is now a system that is approaching 100 individual cameras that record and save footage for nearly two months. Our eyes in the sky allow us to watch, in real time, our hallways, stairwells, common areas, athletic fields, cafeteria and patio, parking lots, and entrances/exits. As visitors enter our building, they are greeted by a sign reminding them that our campus is under video surveillance. Our cameras have become an invaluable resource in our efforts to maintain order and discipline, acting as both a deterrent for misbehavior but also a primary witness in inv...