What's Going On: Thumbtack, laptop or a rat, children will use whatever’s handy

A mischievous student wanted some time off school, so he/she launched a devious plan. 

As the story goes, the student caught three rats and released them in the small country schoolhouse, with the number one, two and four written individually on each rodent’s side.

Apparently, the three rats were caught fairly quickly. But the mischievous student accomplished his/her mission when the school was closed the remainder of the day as everyone searched for a rat with the number three written on its side. 

Regardless of that amusing anecdote’s accuracy, the morale behind it is important: children can be mischievous and they will use whatever tools at their disposal to engage in what one friend of mine likes to call … tomfoolery. 

While a felt-tip marker was the piece of cutting edge technology used in the aforementioned story, I can remember missing a day or two of high school when bus tires were slashed. A switchblade passed for that decade’s cutting edge technology (pun fully intended). 

Last week, the educational experience at Red Oak High School was disrupted when a student allegedly printed a threatening note on a network printer. 

The incident marked the second “security breach” at the school in the last six months, coinciding with the start of the one-to-one program, which pairs every student with a laptop. 

Giving a laptop to all middle and high school students is a really ambitious and costly program. It’s also really cool, in an exciting sort of way. How can we expect to prepare our children for a workforce filled with rapidly developing technology if the tools we are using to educate those students are no more advanced than a pencil and a Trapper Keeper?

The answer: we can’t. 

That’s why the one-to-one laptop program is as exciting as it is ambitious. 

But the downside of providing this technology to children is it does give them one more weapon in their arsenal used to cause chaos and mayhem in the classroom. 

Call it the 21st century version of the thumbtack. 

Unlike the traditional thumbtack in the teacher’s chair trick though, school officials are finding it a lot more difficult to prevent every computer-related shenanigan. 

Despite their best efforts, they have proven unable to prevent every foreseeable security breach. There are simply are too many loopholes when it comes to technology of this sort and it’s impossible to close them all when you may not even know they exist. As a result, the district is finding itself in more of a reactionary posture with these incidents.

They are learning as they go where their system’s vulnerabilities are and addressing them as needed. 

And really, none of this should surprise anyone. My son taught himself how to use our blu-ray remote control in about 11 seconds and I’m pretty sure he’s figured out how to hook up my stereo’s surround sound system. 

Mix the younger generation’s inherent ability to master technology 10 times faster than adults with a healthy dose of natural mischief and you are bound to have a few hacked computer accounts. 

It’s happened and it’s going to happen again. 

And when it does, some befuddled computer technicians, principals and teachers may spend a little time wandering the halls looking for a rat with a number three on it. 

But if that’s the price our school has to pay to ensure our children are being prepared for a 21st century workforce, then it’s one worth paying. 

Gregory Orear is the General Manager/Editor of the Red Oak Express and Glenwood Opinion-Tribune. He can be contacted at publisher@redoakexpress.com.