Texas School District Tracking IDs

[brownie]

OMG! Do you really think the truant kids are saying to themselves, "Gee but I really wanted to vote for homecoming queen." ??? seriously?

 

I would never let my child go to school there. Read the Bar Code Tatoo...not a really great book but the concept is scary. DS just read it. This is an invasion of privacy.

[Cammie]

You don't have to use RFID to implement access-control to parts of the campus, or to provide a way to make purchases electronically.

 

If you think for one second that they won't use it to track outside of campus you are fooling yourself.

 

 

No, what I am saying is that according to the article it is the badge that has the RFID chip. Therefore once you leave school and keep your badge in your locker or in your home, the child is no longer tracked. Again, I do understand the concern people have about what this could lead to but I think people are getting upset over a poorly written article and making LOTS of assumptions based on it.

[athena1277]

And they wonder why some people say schools today are like prisons. I don't think prisoners have RFID chips (although I could be wrong). It still bothers me that at the school my son get speech at has the doors locked all day and we have to get buzzed in. It's a really good school in a good neighborhood in one of the richest counties in the country.

[bobbeym]

You don't have to use RFID to implement access-control to parts of the campus, or to provide a way to make purchases electronically.

 

If you think for one second that they won't use it to track outside of campus you are fooling yourself.

 

:iagree: I'm not at all surprised that San Antonio is doing this; I only wonder what took so long. Houston ISD implemented it years ago, although I've never heard whether it worked or not. We had only just moved out of the Houston area at that time so I probably didn't pay much attention to what was going on.

[bobbeym]

No, what I am saying is that according to the article it is the badge that has the RFID chip. Therefore once you leave school and keep your badge in your locker or in your home, the child is no longer tracked. Again, I do understand the concern people have about what this could lead to but I think people are getting upset over a poorly written article and making LOTS of assumptions based on it.

 

Down here, students have to have their school ID to get on the school bus. In Houston, they can ride free on the city's public system by showing their ID cards. I doubt SA is any different based on the size of the district. So leaving the RFID-chipped badges at school isn't an option.

 

And I don't for a second believe they won't use them to track where kids are after school hours.

 

And they wonder why some people say schools today are like prisons. I don't think prisoners have RFID chips (although I could be wrong). It still bothers me that at the school my son get speech at has the doors locked all day and we have to get buzzed in. It's a really good school in a good neighborhood in one of the richest counties in the country.

 

This idea bothers me too. It's one of the main reasons why we pulled DS out of junior high to homeschool him. The alternative school they were going to send him to utilizes locked doors and buzzers, along with new students having to be completely quiet while on campus - except for permission to ask/answer a teacher question - the first 15 days they are there. Yes, even at lunch. Every infraction earns you an extra day at the school. The school even makes you sign an agreement that they has the authority - without warning, agreement, or permission - to reassign your student to the Harris County Juvenile Justice Alternative Education Program School if they earn enough infractions. And we were blatantly told that the principle assigning him to the school had final say on any appeal we made and wouldn't be changing her mind. She choose to take a bad choice made by a 13 yo non-violent boy and make a case example out of him during her first year at the jr. high. :cursing: We chose to not play her games and now he's at home and prefers it.

 

So yeah, I'm not at all surprised that Texas schools are doing things like chip tracking badging and I only wonder how long it'll take everyone else to jump on board.

[Down_the_Rabbit_Hole]

Tracking during school hours is just a way to get a boot in the door of tracking 24/7, it is scary. Next it will be chipping newborns for safety reasons.

 

The mark of the beast, big brother, what ever you want to call it.... it is right there ready to go into effect.

[Mrs Mungo]

OMG! Do you really think the truant kids are saying to themselves, "Gee but I really wanted to vote for homecoming queen." ??? seriously?

 

The RFID chips are to help with a truancy issue, but *all* of the kids have them, not just the truant kids. That's what I'm saying. People are thinking all of this is one program, and it's not.

 

This is an invasion of privacy.

 

I don't disagree. I just think people should discuss it accurately.

 

No, what I am saying is that according to the article it is the badge that has the RFID chip. Therefore once you leave school and keep your badge in your locker or in your home, the child is no longer tracked. Again, I do understand the concern people have about what this could lead to but I think people are getting upset over a poorly written article and making LOTS of assumptions based on it.

 

:iagree:

[AlmiraGulch]

No, what I am saying is that according to the article it is the badge that has the RFID chip. Therefore once you leave school and keep your badge in your locker or in your home, the child is no longer tracked. Again, I do understand the concern people have about what this could lead to but I think people are getting upset over a poorly written article and making LOTS of assumptions based on it.

 

I hear you, but I disagree. I realize the article "says" that they don't track when the student is off campus, but I don't believe that they won't. Why else would they need RFID at all? You can control access to parts of the campus and facilitate electronic purchases without RFID (ask anyone who has ever worked in an office building, and used their badge to buy lunch at the company cafeteria...no RFID there). I cannot for the life of me understand how knowing where your child is at every moment while they're on campus will have any effect on chronic truancy.

[Matryoshka]

I'm pretty sure it's done in Massachusetts. I remember reading about it. I'll look for a link.

 

I'm here in MA, and my kids just started public high school. I've never heard of that here.

 

Couldn't they just track the kids by the GPS in their phones if they want to hunt down the truant kids? If some kid wants to be truant, they're going to ditch that ID somewhere anyway...

 

I don't agree with this, btw - I agree it seems like grooming for when you get the subdermal implant...

[Down_the_Rabbit_Hole]

Honestly I do not know how this can help with truancy issues. So the school knows Johnny is truant, they call, then what? Do they go get Johnny? How is knowing Johnny is truant using the tracking any different then knowing Johnny is truant once role call is done? And if this is mainly to help with truancy, why does a student need the tracking once in school? No matter how they spin it, the real reason is not what they state. Maybe school officials really believe this is the reason behind the tracking, but school officials are not the most 'thinking' type people. This idea came from another group of people whose agenda is not our safety but something else entirely.

[frugalmama]

I hear you, but I disagree. I realize the article "says" that they don't track when the student is off campus, but I don't believe that they won't. Why else would they need RFID at all? You can control access to parts of the campus and facilitate electronic purchases without RFID (ask anyone who has ever worked in an office building, and used their badge to buy lunch at the company cafeteria...no RFID there). I cannot for the life of me understand how knowing where your child is at every moment while they're on campus will have any effect on chronic truancy.

 

That's just it - there is NO way to turn off the RFID chips EVER. The RFID signals are picked up by a beacon or by satellite, and constantly beam out. Unless the chip is deprogramed or destroyed, the signals continue to be sent out and collected. Their saying they won't track off campus is a blatant lie.

 

I did my semester project for my capstone class in CIS on RFID, and I really detest it after seeing what it can do.

[Down_the_Rabbit_Hole]

That's just it - there is NO way to turn off the RFID chips EVER. The RFID signals are picked up by a beacon or by satellite, and constantly beam out. Unless the chip is deprogramed or destroyed, the signals continue to be sent out and collected. Their saying they won't track off campus is a blatant lie.

 

I did my semester project for my capstone class in CIS on RFID, and I really detest it after seeing what it can do.

Can it be possible for others to track the RFID chip? Not just the schools?

[Kathryn]

I hear you, but I disagree. I realize the article "says" that they don't track when the student is off campus, but I don't believe that they won't. Why else would they need RFID at all? You can control access to parts of the campus and facilitate electronic purchases without RFID (ask anyone who has ever worked in an office building, and used their badge to buy lunch at the company cafeteria...no RFID there). I cannot for the life of me understand how knowing where your child is at every moment while they're on campus will have any effect on chronic truancy.

 

Honestly I do not know how this can help with truancy issues. So the school knows Johnny is truant, they call, then what? Do they go get Johnny? How is knowing Johnny is truant using the tracking any different then knowing Johnny is truant once role call is done? And if this is mainly to help with truancy, why does a student need the tracking once in school? No matter how they spin it, the real reason is not what they state. Maybe school officials really believe this is the reason behind the tracking, but school officials are not the most 'thinking' type people. This idea came from another group of people whose agenda is not our safety but something else entirely.

 

:iagree: This doesn't make any sense for dealing with truancy. Kids who skip school aren't going to take their IDs with them.

[frugalmama]

Can it be possible for others to track the RFID chip? Not just the schools?

 

If they know the frequency the RFID chip is using, and write a program to collect the data, yes it is quite possible. Pretty easy actually as long as you know the frequency used.

 

 

Stores have done it - RFID was invented to allow large stores like Walmart to do instant inventory in their warehouses. There have been a few cases were competitors basically hacked into the RFID network to let them see what the store was stocking and thus the planned sales.

[ktgrok]

RFID is NOT GPS. They can't track it long distance. They can't track the kid off school grounds. An RFID chip has to be in close proximity to the scanner to work. So I imagine they have scanners at the classroom doors. But No, it can't tell what you do outside of school.

 

We use those badges at the national veterinary conference to track continuing ed hours. It gets scanned as you walk through the scanner (looks a bit like a metal detector), so they know you went in to the class.

[ktgrok]

Ok, I get the whole slippery slope argument but I feel like I read a different article from all of you.

 

In the school in Texas they have an ID badge they wear on a lanyard or something around their neck. This ID badge is now fitted with an RFID chip. The school can track the ID badge. Kids are required to wear the badge WHILE AT SCHOOL. There is nothing in the article suggesting that at the Texas school kids are required to wear the badge all day and night. I do think it was wrong for the school to not have an "opt out" system or for them to try coercive tactics. But I don't have any problem with a school having a system to track where kids are while at school. Sounds like it must be a fairly large high school for this to have become an issue.

 

In the school in California they appear to have instituted a special program for delinquent students. Those students who are identified as delinquent get the phone calls, counseling, etc, etc.

 

Again, I understand the objection to round the clock monitoring - but I am not sure that the article really goes there.

 

:iagree:

[frugalmama]

RFID is NOT GPS. They can't track it long distance. They can't track the kid off school grounds. An RFID chip has to be in close proximity to the scanner to work. So I imagine they have scanners at the classroom doors. But No, it can't tell what you do outside of school.

 

We use those badges at the national veterinary conference to track continuing ed hours. It gets scanned as you walk through the scanner (looks a bit like a metal detector), so they know you went in to the class.

 

Actually depending on the type of RFID chip, it can be used long distance via a satellite. The most common type is a short range designed to be used only within a building, but even that chip does have long range capabilities. The short range chips used to have a range of up to a mile a good 5 years ago - I expect that has increased now.

[ktgrok]

That's just it - there is NO way to turn off the RFID chips EVER. The RFID signals are picked up by a beacon or by satellite, and constantly beam out. Unless the chip is deprogramed or destroyed, the signals continue to be sent out and collected. Their saying they won't track off campus is a blatant lie.

 

I did my semester project for my capstone class in CIS on RFID, and I really detest it after seeing what it can do.

 

Not true. Many RFID tags don't even have a battery,a nd are only activated when scanned. They do not broadcast. And the the range is at most generally a matter of yards.

[ktgrok]

http://www.wireless-technology-advisor.com/rfid-range.html

 

generally they use near field communication for id badges you swipe, with a very short range.

[ktgrok]

everything I've found on tags that can be read via sattelite are combination tags, using GPS and RFID.

[ktgrok]

Actually depending on the type of RFID chip, it can be used long distance via a satellite. The most common type is a short range designed to be used only within a building, but even that chip does have long range capabilities. The short range chips used to have a range of up to a mile a good 5 years ago - I expect that has increased now.

 

any links on this? I've not found anything like this.

[AnnaM]

I haven't read the responses so forgive me if I repeat someone, but there was a girl who was standing up and refusing to wear it and she was punished by not being allowed to participate in school activities.

 

 

I think one reason that this is such a touchy subject is because of the cameras that were found on the student laptops and other stories like that.

 

http://articles.cnn.com/2010-02-19/justice/laptop.suit_1_laptop-program-webcam-district-s-two-high-schools?_s=PM:CRIME

 

Regardless of all that though, this is a money thing. I don't think they have even tried to swing it as a student safety issue but if they did, that is complete bunk. It is purely about the funds they lose when a student is truant. Instead of trying to force tracking onto these kids, they need to examine why there are so many truant children to begin with. And as other posters said, it is way too easy just to hand the ID card to someone else and walk off campus without it. This is not an accurate way to track truancy.

 

And finally, because I am a bit conspiracy theory when it comes to the system, just because they say it can't be tracked off school grounds, doesn't make it true.

[LucyStoner]

RFID tracking can't get ahead of the technology limitations of RFID. I don't see why any school would bother to see where kids are outside of school hours. Don't get me wrong, I am not ok with it (mainly because of costs and depersonalizing efforts to increase attendence doesn't seem effective.) Still, I have to agree that a lot of posts here are coming from a place of fear and suspicion. I reckon school employees want to be home at night, with their own kids and families not malevolently tracking mine. Calling truant kids at 8pm to see if they are ok and heading for bed rather than out getting in trouble with friends seems like good old fashion concern and help. I know kids who have no parental support at home. They sometimes need someone to merely give a darn about them.

[Cammie]

RFID tracking can't get ahead of the technology limitations of RFID. I don't see why any school would bother to see where kids are outside of school hours. Don't get me wrong, I am not ok with it (mainly because of costs and depersonalizing efforts to increase attendence doesn't seem effective.) Still, I have to agree that a lot of posts here are coming from a place of fear and suspicion. I reckon school employees want to be home at night, with their own kids and families not malevolently tracking mine. Calling truant kids at 8pm to see if they are ok and heading for bed rather than out getting in trouble with friends seems like good old fashion concern and help. I know kids who have no parental support at home. They sometimes need someone to merely give a darn about them.

 

 

:iagree:

And now I officially throw in the towel on trying to get away from the fear and suspicion and downright paranoia to focusing on the very limited information in the article cited. There are people who will never trust any action that is a government action and I think that this issue is a hot button one for them. Whole lot of speculation, assumptions and misinformation going on and it doesn't appear that people want to focus on what the article actually says - which is not much.

[AlmiraGulch]

Still, I have to agree that a lot of posts here are coming from a place of fear and suspicion.

 

I can't speak for everyone else, but I'm coming from a place of indignation. No one has cited a single valid reason for adding RFID tracking to student ID badges. Not one.

 

If they are going to spend taxpayer dollars to implement, they should a) present a business case to the taxpayers (and parents) that shows that the end justifies the means; and b) allow parents (or students over 18) to opt out.

 

I also think it's naive to assume that technology limitations that exist today will continue to exist a year from now. Do you think that when they're issuing new badges someone will send a memo that says "By they way, while we could only track these badges up to 300 yards when we first issued them, that has now expanded to 2 miles, just so you know...."

[AlmiraGulch]

:iagree:

Whole lot of speculation, assumptions and misinformation going on and it doesn't appear that people want to focus on what the article actually says - which is not much.

 

But this is sort of the point. Again, no one can cite ONE reason why RFID technology is what they elected to institute when other technologies would work without the same level of potential misuse. Nor can they say how exactly it's supposed to positively impact truancy rates. In the absence of information, I absolutely assume that this is what they are using now, for this stated purpose, but that there is every intention of having it in place now so that it can be used for other purposes later.

 

It's very much a matter of principle to me. I'm not saying that anyone is at home spying on my family (or that they even want to). I'm saying that this sort of intrusion is unnecessary, at best, and that it lays the groundwork and infrastructure for expansion into other uses that we would likely not even know about.

[Lovin Learnin]

Whether it can track a student while off campus is not relevant, imo. The issue I have with this system is that it will get these kids used to being chipped. A few years down the line it won't be too much of a stretch for their employers to get them to agree to a tracking system. Truant kids are not going to care that someone knows they are not at school. We already know they are not at school. And they don't care. So what's the deterrence?

 

Think of the information we already put out there. If you use the discount card at your local grocery store all of your purchases are known and tracked. The store will tell you they use this information to target discounts and coupons specifically to you. Innocent marketing tool? Perhaps. But it sure is getting us used to divulging information we might not have disclosed if someone just asked us to do it 10 years ago. Our privacy is slowly being whittled away. One generation at a time. Bit by bit.

[Down_the_Rabbit_Hole]

Whether it can track a student while off campus is not relevant, imo. The issue I have with this system is that it will get these kids used to being chipped. A few years down the line it won't be too much of a stretch for their employers to get them to agree to a tracking system. Truant kids are not going to care that someone knows they are not at school. We already know they are not at school. And they don't care. So what's the deterrence?

 

Think of the information we already put out there. If you use the discount card at your local grocery store all of your purchases are known and tracked. The store will tell you they use this information to target discounts and coupons specifically to you. Innocent marketing tool? Perhaps. But it sure is getting us used to divulging information we might not have disclosed if someone just asked us to do it 10 years ago. Our privacy is slowly being whittled away. One generation at a time. Bit by bit.

:iagree:THIS! And with this our freedoms in the name of our safety.

We are the frogs in the water slowly being heated...before we know it we are cooked.

[TranquilMind]

Tracking during school hours is just a way to get a boot in the door of tracking 24/7, it is scary. Next it will be chipping newborns for safety reasons.

 

The mark of the beast, big brother, what ever you want to call it.... it is right there ready to go into effect.

 

Absolutely. There are videos on Youtube that were done when the FDA approved chip use for humans. The manufacturer is saying that they need to break down resistance and get some important or famous people to agree to use them first, and then everyone else will be fine with it.

 

I will never be fine with it.

[TranquilMind]

:iagree: This doesn't make any sense for dealing with truancy. Kids who skip school aren't going to take their IDs with them.

 

Right. The very problem that will require the solution of chipping the kid instead of the ID.

 

For their convenience and safety, of course. :glare:

[TranquilMind]

Lovin Learnin: If you use the discount card at your local grocery store all of your purchases are known and tracked. The store will tell you they use this information to target discounts and coupons specifically to you. Innocent marketing tool? Perhaps. But it sure is getting us used to divulging information we might not have disclosed if someone just asked us to do it 10 years ago.

 

I use a relative's business P.O. box for anything like this that I think is worth getting. Not my own information. This is getting harder to do though, with every business being so nosy, and some thinking they have the right to swipe my Driver's license (when pigs fly).

 

Our privacy is slowly being whittled away. One generation at a time. Bit by bit.

 

 

Absolutely. It is AMAZING that some don't see this or don't care. Even my kids understand this and to keep information they put out there very minimal.

[Mrs Mungo]

I can't speak for everyone else, but I'm coming from a place of indignation. No one has cited a single valid reason for adding RFID tracking to student ID badges. Not one.

 

Again, I'm NOT in favor of sticking *broadcasting RFIDs* (which are different than the badges you scan in various places) on students. BUT, the school's website (posted earlier) does give their goals:

1 Increase student safety and security. Our students' parents expect that we always know where their children are in our schools.

 

2. Increase attendance. Through more efficient attendance management, schools can generate additional revenues by identifying students who are not in their seats during roll call but who are in the school and locate them. (Increased attendance = increased state revenues)

 

3. Provide multi-purpose "Smart" Student ID card. The Student ID will provide access to the library and cafeteria, serve as a photo ID, and allow for the purchase of tickets to schools' extracurricular activities. Other uses will be rolled out during the pilot program.If they are going to spend taxpayer dollars to implement, they should a) present a business case to the taxpayers (and parents) that shows that the end justifies the means; and b) allow parents (or students over 18) to opt out.

[SunkistJoy]

... BUT, the school's website (posted earlier) does give their goals:

...

2. Increase attendance. Through more efficient attendance management, schools can generate additional revenues by identifying students who are not in their seats during roll call but who are in the school and locate them. (Increased attendance = increased state revenues)

 

...

 

 

I find it surprising that they have that many students in the building but not in class. Enough to justify spending $500,000 the first year, $100,000 every year after that? Seems like developing some better attendance taking practices would be a cheaper solution ;)

[Reflections]

Adam Savage from Mythbusters talking about RFID chips

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X034R3yzDhw

 

DIY RFID chip blocker wallet:

 

http://www.instructables.com/id/Make-a-RFID-Shielding-Pouch-Out-of-Trash/?ALLSTEPS

 

And find then on Amazon:

 

http://www.amazon.com/Travelon-Blocking-Billfold-Black-Size/dp/B001CZP0BQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1349984148&sr=8-1&keywords=rfid+blocking+wallet

 

And just for grins and giggles - for those of you who want to read what is on the chip:

 

http://www.amazon.com/Indicator-Interface-Proximity-Reader-Black/dp/B007K444HO/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1349984227&sr=1-1&keywords=rfid+scanner

 

:D

[Reflections]

any links on this? I've not found anything like this.

 

Maybe this link? http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/gadgets/high-tech-gadgets/rfid3.htm

[Reflections]

Absolutely. There are videos on Youtube that were done when the FDA approved chip use for humans. The manufacturer is saying that they need to break down resistance and get some important or famous people to agree to use them first, and then everyone else will be fine with it.

 

I will never be fine with it.

 

Yes it is all about breaking down the barriers until people accept it as mainstream and us oddballs are on the fringe. :D

[ccm]

This is not what I was looking for but shows what is happening in Massachusetts:

http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2011/11/20/brockton_high_school_installs_lobby_scanner_to_improve_security/

 

From the article:

Both Mills and Thomas concede some visitors, including parents, are not thrilled with the security scans, believing LobbyGuard is an invasion of their privacy. But they said neither credit information nor criminal arrest records are included in the scan.

“Keeping the schools safe is our number one thing,’’ Thomas said. “And that’s what we have to do.’’

 

What I'm searching for is something I read about the student IDs that they have to wear going through a scanner for attendance purposes, but I can't find that information yet.

 

Again, from the article:

Students and staff in all the schools wear IDs hanging on lanyards around their necks, so if someone is spotted in the halls without either form of identification it’s time to ask questions, officials said.

Edited October 11, 2012 by ccm

[ChocolateReignRemix]

Think of the information we already put out there. If you use the discount card at your local grocery store all of your purchases are known and tracked. The store will tell you they use this information to target discounts and coupons specifically to you. Innocent marketing tool? Perhaps. But it sure is getting us used to divulging information we might not have disclosed if someone just asked us to do it 10 years ago. Our privacy is slowly being whittled away. One generation at a time. Bit by bit.

 

Strange. I never once thought the items I purchased in public from a store were somehow "private".

I can also still buy any item I want without divulging any (what you say is) private information from my grocery store any time I choose. Usually I choose to accept my discount with the knowledge that in return the store is getting data that it can use in its marketing decisions. There is nothing in that transaction that can be reasonably described as an invasion of privacy.

[Perry]

I can also still buy any item I want without divulging any (what you say is) private information from my grocery store any time I choose.

 

I'm not much on the privacy/slippery slope bandwagon, but I have to admit it really annoys me that all my local stores now swipe my drivers license when I buy alcohol or M rated video games. You can't buy those things without it.

[ChocolateReignRemix]

I'm not much on the privacy/slippery slope bandwagon, but I have to admit it really annoys me that all my local stores now swipe my drivers license when I buy alcohol or M rated video games. You can't buy those things without it.

 

 

I just have to present my here in the metro ATL area.

[TranquilMind]

Strange. I never once thought the items I purchased in public from a store were somehow "private".

I can also still buy any item I want without divulging any (what you say is) private information from my grocery store any time I choose. Usually I choose to accept my discount with the knowledge that in return the store is getting data that it can use in its marketing decisions. There is nothing in that transaction that can be reasonably described as an invasion of privacy.

 

Cash is the way I make most purchases. Intentionally.

[TranquilMind]

I'm not much on the privacy/slippery slope bandwagon, but I have to admit it really annoys me that all my local stores now swipe my drivers license when I buy alcohol or M rated video games. You can't buy those things without it.

 

Are you serious? I haven't seen that yet. I don't buy those things but I do know people who do and have definitely been behind people who do.

[AlmiraGulch]

Again, I'm NOT in favor of sticking *broadcasting RFIDs* (which are different than the badges you scan in various places) on students. BUT, the school's website (posted earlier) does give their goals:

1 Increase student safety and security. Our students' parents expect that we always know where their children are in our schools.

 

2. Increase attendance. Through more efficient attendance management, schools can generate additional revenues by identifying students who are not in their seats during roll call but who are in the school and locate them. (Increased attendance = increased state revenues)

 

3. Provide multi-purpose "Smart" Student ID card. The Student ID will provide access to the library and cafeteria, serve as a photo ID, and allow for the purchase of tickets to schools' extracurricular activities. Other uses will be rolled out during the pilot program.If they are going to spend taxpayer dollars to implement, they should a) present a business case to the taxpayers (and parents) that shows that the end justifies the means; and b) allow parents (or students over 18) to opt out.

 

 

Yes, but you don't have to use RFID to do any of these things. That's my point. When I worked in an office, I scanned a badge to go certain places in the building (access control/security) and used the same badge to make purchases electronically in the company cafeteria. The badge did not use an RFID.

 

I also don't see how increased attendance will result at all from this program, regardles of the technology being used.

[ktgrok]

Maybe this link? http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/gadgets/high-tech-gadgets/rfid3.htm

 

That link says that even the ones with big batteries (which ID cards don't have), would only have a range of about 30 meters.

 

The id cards in question are just like the badges lots of people use every day to access their workplace. My husband uses one to get in and of the office, turn off the alarm, etc at his business. Trust me, his degree is in information security, if they could be tracking his badge away from the office he'd have it in a faraday cage ASAP. (His wallet IS an RFID blocking one, but he doesn't keep his badge for work in there).

[Cricket]

I find it surprising that they have that many students in the building but not in class. Enough to justify spending $500,000 the first year, $100,000 every year after that? Seems like developing some better attendance taking practices would be a cheaper solution ;)

 

I thought the same thing. If the school is having such a hard time knowing where students are that they need to tag them like animals in order to track them electronically, then I'd say there are some serious management issues going on. :tongue_smilie: