One of the greatest mischief is the concept of privacy right and decentralization. We humans have been driving towards this concept for as far as I can tell, we trying so hard to ensure everyone's privacy is protected. In as much as we want, practicing it is just beyond our capabilities. It is one thing to create policies but obeying it, is the real test of character. Every now and then, institutions and governmental agencies preach consistently about privacy protection policy but the line start to blur when shovel comes shove.
We start coming up with excuses to back our claims, same policy we have created, we create reasons to violate it. When it comes to privacy right and policy, it is a very sensitive topic. A subject that has subjected gigantic tech companies to consistent lawsuit. Which proves how much we humans try to hold unto it. Most people don't really understand how significance privacy is, it is not tradable, it is not justifiable, it shouldn't be compromisable.
The relevancy of privacy is tied to the core of we humans. Our greatest advantage as humans, is the believe that we are free. I wouldn't say that is entirely true, we are all tied to societal rules that shapes our conduct but that is discussion for another day. Without privacy, we can't really say we are free. To be violated when chosen, is a concept attach to slavery, it means to be controlled, being subjected to unauthorized surveillance, that is what a life without privacy feels like.
Over time, one of the most argued excuse for compromising people's privacy is safety. Why not let go of your privacy rights, to improve personal and the society's safety. It definitely sounds like a good deal for the simple minded. We also have some jobs that violate their staffs privacy rights, all for the sake of the organization. It feels like a small price to pay to get the kind of jobs we desire. These are the same institution that guaranteed users and customers data protection but yet, violates their staff privacy, it is a great irony.
Now that we understand how much privacy means to we humans and how it is easily violated, should we allow schools monitor staffs and students on social media account? How many serial killers or convicts have a social media account? That is a question we need to answer. If granted the authority to monitor staffs social media accounts and students, knowing they are being monitored, do you think they would speak freely of their intentions? We humans, the most intelligent of all species on earth, we can't be easily maneuvered. What about those without social media accounts, what will be done about it? Will schools force them to have social media account, so that they can be monitored?
That is one side of it. Granting such rights to school diminishes one of the roles social media plays in our society. While the conventional media has become a tool for propaganda for the elite and government, it is had to trust anything being disseminated. But with social media, it is unfiltered to an extent. people get to speak up anonymously about societal ill and believe me, a lot of it occur in schools. We have had various incident caught on camera or reported through social media. Will this still be possible, when staffs and students are being monitored?
Will they be able to speak freely about some hideous incident that occur in some schools? This is not just about violating people's privacy right but also silencing the voice of the people. From my own perspective, whatever good institution like schools feel like can be achieved with this, definitely doesn't outweigh the bad it will do. Schools should stick with their jurisdiction and let other entity carry out their duties outside school premises.
This write-up was inspired by weekly featured content titled School monitor in hive learners community.
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