Entry 3

Those who have been following my blog know that as a Millennial I am huge supporter of educational technology integration for schools and training rooms alike. I am always looking for ways to meet the plugged in student where they are. This week, I will be playing a little bit of the Devil’s advocate and touching lightly on my perceived downfalls to having a fully network integrated classroom; because even Albert Einstein knew, “technological progress is like an ax in the hands of a pathological criminal.”

 No matter how effective the teacher, technology is not 100% reliable or impenetrable. When novices begin using technology in an everyday classroom setting, they may encounter any number of viruses, tracking cookies, or phishing sites (Gunter) that can wreak havoc on a perfectly planned lesson. Whether it be clicking a link, or downloading a handout, teachers with internet access in their rooms open up networks to all kinds of viral attacks. Though many schools have begun running routine anti-virus programs and adding layers of firewalls to protect themselves, few are doing enough to truly safe guard against Trojan horse and logic bomb attacks. 

Català: Cavall de Troia, de María Helguera, i Llanterna, de Pablo Palazuelo, al pati de l'Auditori de Barcelona. This is a photo of public art indexed in the cataloge Art Públic of Barcelona (Spain) under the code number 2910-1 (prefixed with territorial id: 08019/2910-1)

     Another major threat to the tech savvy teacher is a familiar one… just presented in a 21^st century context. The disruptive student in a technologically integrated classroom is not one who talks out of turn, or throws paper airplanes, it's the hacker. For example, just 5 short months ago, in my home state of Florida, a 14-year-old student was “charged with a cyber-crime after allegedly hacking onto his school's computer network and changing the background image on a teacher's computer…” (Wong). This new phenomenon of hacking school sites can be observed on any given day in a google news stream. Any student can search hacks and l find a plethora of articles with directions on how to crack their school's system. The current generation of students have been using computers for years. If a school does not have a decent password protection plan in place, anyone can guess their way into a teacher’s account. It does not take a government level encryption code hacker to guess your birthday, or pet’s name. With just a few clicks of the mouse any disgruntled student can post inappropriate content to the schools website, or change an entire year of class grades into A+’s.

Image: 'Windows login screen'
http://www.flickr.com/photos/132889348@N07/20011568173
Found on flickrcc.net

     The last, and in my opinion scariest, attack that the networked classroom should be weary of is that of an electromagnetic pulse, also known as EMP. Never heard of it? Well you should read up. In 1962 an EMP was set off 240 miles above the earth and 900 miles away from Oahu, Hawaii; the result, “The EMP was powerful enough to affect the entire electric grid in Hawaii, blowing out streetlights, and resulting in telephone outages and radio blackouts” (Kelly- Detwiler). Depending on the EMPs size, an electrical energy surge is created that is capable of knocking out any device that uses a plug or battery within a desired range. EMPs are growing continually smaller and more powerful, as years pass, and may soon be small enough to be carried in a shirt pocket (Woolsey). What implications does this have on a plugged in classroom, or networked school? Complete system failure! 

Author: Firstfreddy      Description: Switchable multiple socket, power strip

Date 23 May 2007     Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Socket_5.jpg

     How do we charge bravely into the night, when we know all the dangers that lay before us? We commit to becoming versed in computer security, and increase our digital awareness.  In 2014, “President Obama signed an executive order to guard critical infrastructure against cyber-attacks,” (Woolsey) and schools should begin following in suit. A great way to start moving into safer classroom computer practices is to begin to build internet guidelines for your school. Outline the consequences for hacking, cyber bullying, and data corruption. Have fake phishing emails sent to the staff, and see how many actually open it; this will allow the administration to begin to truly assess the current level of the staff’s security awareness. Schools may also consider offering in-service training for safer internet use, and routinely updating resources on ways to counter attacks. It also wouldn't hurt to keep educators apprised of current viruses and malware plaguing the school.The bright side to all of this is that a versatile teacher can begin to integrate technology, while keeping in mind that if all else fails teaching with just a text book may be a safest back-up plan around.

Resources

Gunter, R., & Gunter, G. (2015). Communications, Networks, the Internet, and the World Wide Web. In Teachers discovering computers: Integrating Technology in a Changing World (Eighth ed., pp. 1-489). Boston, MA: Cengage Learning.

Kelly- Detwiler, P. (2014, July 31). Failure to Protect U.S. Against Electromagnetic Pulse Threat Could Make 9/11 Look Trivial Someday. Forbes.

Wong, C. (2015, April 13). Florida Teen Charged With Computer Hacking After Changing Teacher's Computer Background To Gay Kiss Image. Retrieved September 23, 2015.

Woolsey, R., & Pry, P. (2014, August 12). The Growing Threat From an EMP Attack. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved September 23, 2015, from http://www.wsj.com/articles/james-woolsey-and-peter-vincent-pry-the-growing-threat-from-an-emp-attack-1407885281