LiveSchool

As the “feedback society” spreads from restaurants and workplaces into homes and schools, children are given new metrics for success or failure. LiveSchool compares students’ performance across classes and schools and shares real-time behavioral scoring and performance details with administrators, teachers, parents, and kids themselves. While open scoring systems like LiveSchool can motivate some kids and help teachers, they could increase peer pressure or disadvantage kids with behavioral or learning challenges.

LiveSchool is part of a burgeoning industry of technologies for monitoring kids in schools. This includes RFID chips to monitor attendance, software that scans students’ email and social media accounts, and motion sensors to detect potential school shootings. These technologies may claim to keep students physically safer, but constant surveillance may also affect their mental and emotional health. How much do we want to rely on technology to monitor and track our children’s every move?