Should K-12 school districts spend millions of tax dollars every year to track the peeing and pooping habits of students? Is it the government’s (and private industry’s) business how many times our kids pee and poop every day and how long it takes them to do so?
E-hallpass apparently thinks being “Bathroom Big Brother” is a brilliant idea and that schools and county governments should pay them collectively hundreds of millions of dollars per year to track our kids’ pee and poop habits. The company is throwing around buzzwords like accountability, safety, etc. to justify why they should be paid big bucks to analyze our kids pee and poop habits.
E-hallpass has pitched Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) and one school (I won’t name it to protect the privacy/safety of the kids) is actually testing its service. My kids don’t attend this school; however, parents have reached out to voice their concerns about this Stasi (East Germany Secret Police) like surveillance tool that is an expensive wasteful solution looking for a problem to solve.
E-hallpass also encourages students to use a Google social login which clearly demonstrates a lack of digital privacy savvy. The FTC recently fined Google a record $170 million dollars for misusing kids data so I am not sure why E-hallpass would think its a good idea to trust Google with access to our kids peeing and pooping records.
What if a student is just getting their period and needs to go to the bathroom more than the apps “average” bathroom time? What if a student has acne and goes to the bathroom more than than “average” to put on cover up because they are embarrassed at having pimples? What if a student has special personal needs? What if a student has a medical bladder control issue (one of my classmates growing up had one) and constantly goes to the bathroom?
What if a student has a cold or is sick and is going to the bathroom to blow their nose multiple times/per day or spit out extra phlegm? What if a student is nervous about a test and has to constantly pee due to anxiety? What if a student is having sexual identity issues and is taking longer to go to the bathroom because they want more privacy? What if a student has diarrhea or has a bowel movement that takes longer than “average” to do their personal business?
Will students subjected to this Orwellian poop monitoring be afraid to poop in our school’s bathroom because it may take too much time and harm their bathroom score? Will students also avoid properly washing their hands because of the same reason?
One high school that implemented e-hallpass found that 80 percent of the student body felt that it was not beneficial. In addition, the survey results stated that e-hallpass disrupted class and pointed unwanted attention towards students. High school is challenging enough, kids shouldn’t have to worry about whether their personal bodily functions are being analyzed and scored by for-profit companies and the government.
There are approximately 165,000 students who attend MCPS. Currently, the service costs $2/student/year which is up from less than $.79 per student per year in 2016 (or a 120% increase). This is a massive increase in pricing in just 3 years. Therefore, to track how many times and how long it takes for students to pee or poop it would cost my county government at least $330,000 for the first year alone.
E-hallpass’ record demonstrates this price will most likely more than double in the near future. Therefore, should Montgomery County taxpayers spend between $500,000-$1,000,000 per year to track the frequency and amount of time it takes for students to pee and poop or should this money be utilized to hire more teachers, mental health professionals, and school safety officers to actually help make our kids safer and healthier?
The E-Hall Pass Apple ratings (view it on a mobile device to see all the ratings) by users are awful at this point (1.5 out of 5 stars). This service must really anger students and parents because many of the reviews are some of the most ridiculous and funny I have ever seen.
Parents across the country are up in arms about this communist China like surveillance of students. Colleges, employers, insurance companies, and data brokers will work to access this new data trove because of its value. Kids should never be required to have Internet access and go online to obtain permission to go to the bathroom.
What happens when the school’s Internet isn’t working properly, the app isn’t working, or when a hacker thinks its funny to screw with our kids bathroom access? Should a Silicon Valley algorithm based on black box AI be in charge of our kids ability to go to the bathroom?
I am drawing a line in the proverbial sand. There is no way I will allow the government and a for profit company to track my kids’ peeing & pooping habits. By design, this Orwellian software harms the physical and mental health, welfare, and safety of our kids and its also a massive waste of tax dollars.