Should websites be blocked in schools and libraries?

Question

Should websites be blocked in schools and libraries?

umm guys...help? this is for my L.A. class...k i'll wait for feedbacks! thanks

Should websites be blocked in schools and libraries?

umm guys...help? this is for my L.A. class...we're doing a debaet and apperently im in the "Affirmative" side so i'll HAVE to agree that websites (inappropriate ones)...should be blocked...

k i'll wait for feedbacks! thanks

Answer 1

Websites? What kind of websites? Websites containing relevant information concerning studies or resources should not be blocked. But I think websites that contain pornographic material, flash games and which give way to other forms of communication to people should not be allowed in classes. This is because it makes the student concentrate more on things not related to education, and will make the student go astray. I've seen lots of students surfing on sites on Myspace, and waste all their class time on such sites. This ultimately forces them to have poor grades.

Websites being blocked in libraries is a totally different matter. Most people wouldn't come to libraries to surf on the net for indecent material. The library is for learning stuff, gaining more knowledge, being a bright one, so I wouldn't agree on restricting anything there.

Answer 2

Free speech is a wonderful ideal.

Would you want anyone who wants to have the right to say or show YOUR children anything they want?

Schools are places of learning, which cannot be done in circumstances where EVERYTHING is thrown in at once. That's why we protect the young from certain things until they have enough education to understand and avoid the pitfalls and dangers of "adult rights".

Libraries have a different societal goal. They seek to educate and enlighten, so even they edit which books they let in to the library. You can't just write a book and insist it go into a library. So despite the library protest over censorship, what they want is power to choose what is censored. At the same time, the problem is partially due to space, and the internet doesn't take up much.
I would leave libraries free and open, but restrict access by kids using their library cards and adult supervision.

Good luck.

Answer 3

Yes.. i love myspace and when i was in school i wished i could get on it but it was blocked but yes now that i look back im glad it was blocked.. nobody gets anything done and now myspace is used to bully and trash talk .. so why let people do things like that at school.. also porn? definatly blocked.. i think schools are just being careful.. as for libraries.. i dont know i mean school is strictly learning environment so yea but libraries.. i dont know.. maybe the more harsh websites.. but not all.

Answer 4

No they shouldn't, at least not in libraries. When a parent signs an application for a library card they are giving the okay for internet priveledges. Unfortunately so much funding for libraries comes from the government which has mandated that public computers be filtered. At schools I kind of understand, the parent has to send their child to school, and cannot always be there to make sure that their child makes good online decisions. That is what we usually tell parents when they complain about the library computers...they should talk to their child -- not us.

Answer 5

Yes. Porn sites, game sites, entertainment sites, etc. These are institutional accounts and having students/patrons on such sites can bog down the whole district/system. The institution is paying for the services and should have some say in how the services are used. The services are purchased for research and learning, not for fun and entertainment. They also have an obligation to make sure that certain types of sites are not accessible by those who are underage. Limiting access to some websites keeps things from bogging down (which can happen anyway during peak use times) so that students/patrons can access the internet for the uses for which the institution purchased it.

Answer 6

There is an argument to block for schools but a library is no place to start censoring material.


Observation: This question shows just how hung up folks are about sex. It's a good thing we are not as hung up about other acts of nature.

Answer 7

Yes. Blocking websites protects the computers from viruses. At the same time, the users are protected from getting to sites they may not want to view. If you want to view a pornographic site, do it in the privacy of your own home.

Answer 8

Some websites, probably - those which we would restrict access to if you're under 18. Like pornography. However, I definitely don't recommend randomly blocking websites that you might find personally offensive - we don't want to turn into China, blocking anything that disagrees with our gov't or the individual religions in this country.

Answer 9

Yes

Answer 10

Nope just respect their restrictions and use the computers for useful purpuses if they let you go to facebook myspace and all these other sights that are blocked everyone would be allowed and it would get out of control.