Security
...a big brother, sister, or parent. The whole idea of the camera system is to convince students not to even attempt to do something unacceptable. The cameras on campus could also deflect terrorism from outside the school environment by scanning the entire campus for intruders or suspicious-looking packages. Most parents would rather have their students and campus monitored than having rogue bomb threats and true terror attacks on the school. During one of the three bomb scares that occurred in my small town high school, there was a suspicious-looking briefcase actually left in the parking lot. If cameras had been in place, authorities would identified the perpetrator and possibly determined it was a student playing a prank and not a true cause for alarm. Since there was no video camera on campus, school was dismissed in the early a.m. and many parents were unnecessarily alarmed due to the media coverage of the bogus event. Due to a practical joke, crucial teaching/learning time was wasted. Every minute should count when learning is involved. According to a study prepared by the National Assessment of Education Progress, only five percent of seventeen-year-old high school students can read well enough to understand and use information found in technical materials, literary essays, and historical documents. Not only will teaching/learning time be improved by less violence and implied threats of violence, but also the teacher’s habits might improve by the installation of cameras. Teachers will realize that they cannot just write the assignment on the board and tell the class to read it, but that they are being paid to teach the material to the class. Another instance in my high school occurred when a popular, well-liked teacher would give what he called “free days” to tell dirty jokes and talk about other more professional teachers. He was never caught telling these jokes because most of the students loved him and those that did not were afraid of reprisals from their peers. A camera in his classroom would have been a blessing to those students that were there to learn. Academic performance could be greatly increased if parents were allowed to view the tapes of the classroom and see their son or daughter sleeping in class, passing notes, or talking when they should be studying. It would take a lot of stress away from the teachers who actually do teach as they would not have to prove to parents that they were presenting the material. They could present them the tapes and show that their little Johnny or Susie w...