China – Hangzhou Number 11 High School has been implementing cameras in order to view student and teacher activity. They also aim to add them into college dormitories. 

This change is raising concerns from outside – students and educators alike. Where is the line of privacy crossed? People are left to wonder.

Students find themselves afraid to be comfortable in class as facial recognition software is installed in all classrooms, so that they can capture mood percentage data to catching a student skimming through a book too fast or spacing out. This system keeps students on edge as teachers will be alerted and disciplinary action taken.

Many people have been concerned by the tyrannical behavior displayed in China recently especially after the issues that have occured with Hong Kong and censorship issues across the media and land alike. 

Surveillance has been taken a step further with “intelligent uniforms” being tested in schools. These uniforms have trackers inside while being specifically issued to students. These schools will now know every move a student makes between these two components. This borderlines on obsessive to many watching this technology roll out in the Chinese education system. 

When asking a teacher at Naugatuck High School her thoughts on the situation here is what Mrs. Dymond had to say, “All people, including children, have the right to privacy; we have the right to have off days during school, and we have the right to push off studying. To think that the government can punish us for any of it is terrifying.”

China is doing this because they hope to improve student behavior and scores. However, this has made students more on edge according to interviews. The world will have to see how this impacts these students.