RFID tags are useful but I doubt they should be used to monitor kids in schools as this Texan judge has just ruled. Im afraid this takes all the fun out of school. Some of the best memories I have from school was when I skipped classes and hiding from teachers, I still passed my courses but from time to time kids need breaks too.
A US federal judge has ruled that a John Jay High School student has to wear a radio frequency identification (RFID) badge for monitoring purposes. In the ruling, District Judge Orlando Garcia said San Antonio Northside School District was within its rights to expel sophomore Andrea Hernandez, who refused to wear the tracking device, from Jay High School to another school where the RFID badge is not mandatory. The case has raised technology-based privacy concerns, while Northside argued that the Student Locator Projector enhances student safety and security and generated funds for the district based on student attendance.
Reuters reported that Texas law counts a student present for purposes of distributing state aid to education funds based on the number of pupils in the classroom at the start of each day. Northside District said it was losing US$1.7 million a year due to students loitering in the stairwells or chatting in the hallways.
RFID technology and tags are widely used for a range of things including identifying livestock or pets, control merchandise inventory, and tracking prisoners.
