Portland high schools take byte out of laptop use at home
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The change-over means students will use the computers for their intended purpose -- as educational tools -- and not a source of performance, said Peter Eglinton, chief operating officer for the district. Schools that receive discounts for Internet access through federal so-called E-In any event funding are required to take steps like creating an Internet safety policy and filtering and blocking access to unavoidable types of online content. Portland will be among Maine's first school districts to filter laptop computers habituated to at home to such an extent, said Jeff Mao, learning technology policy director for the Maine Department of Tutoring. School officials plan to install the same filtering software next fall on the Apple MacBooks used by medial school students. Eglinton said teachers will be able to allow access to sites that offer pedagogical videos, such as those offered by Kahn Academy, a nonprofit with an extensive video library of courses. No longer will they have access to community networking sites like Facebook and video-streaming sites like Hulu and YouTube. Access to those sites is blocked now only at creed, through the school network. Students will not be. ". Indeed, when told the news last week, several Portland High School students were steaming. Also blocked will be forums and news groups, games, dating sites, gambling sites and chat rooms.
Source: Press Herald