HOW CAN CCTV WORK IN EDUCATION

According to a report by the Times Education Supplement (TES), teachers in two UK schools plan to start wearing body cameras whilst teaching. It’s a technique that schools in the US have  trialed.

The idea is that teachers will wear cameras to film their pupils at all times to capture minor incidents in the classroom. The cameras don’t record all the time just when a switch on the device is activated in order for incidents to be recorded and encrypted footage saved.

Tom Ellis, a principal lecturer at the Institute of Criminal Justice Studies at Portsmouth University, pointed out:

“There’s very much an emphasis on getting rid of low-level disruption or disorder in the classroom.”

Ellis is also confident that the introduction of body cameras in the classroom can act as a deterrent. He explained:

“It can be used for self-reflection. It can be shown back to the pupil, one-on-one, and that can have a positive impact, without the need to resort to disciplinary process.”

Using body cameras within educational institutions is a relatively new idea – however, CCTV has been operating in schools across the country already. They tend to be used for

• Video Content Analysis systems, so that analysis of CCTV images can be carried out in order to provide meaningful information. For example…
• The identification of whether objects have been removed from a certain area of the school.
• The analysis of CCTV images in order to identify specific patterns, like smoke when addressing arson attacks.
• The ability to establish virtual tripwires that trigger an alert, should someone attempt to cross a specific boundary – eliminating the need to erect walls or fencing at these locations.
• CCTV in classrooms to address issues of bullying and also assist with observations in teacher training  — for the latter, this technology can be used as an alternative to having a teaching colleague present in the classroom throughout the entire lesson.

A Less divisive piece of security design specifically for schools and colleges is something now as  access control system which can be added to turnstiles, gates and barriers so that you can always know who is on your site.

What kind of security do you have in your school?  Is there any in your classroom? What do you think about teachers wearing cameras in class? How would you like to see the bigger picture of BfL addressed so the need for cameras can be removed? You can brush up on your BfL skills at our free accredited CPD event of 24 June.

Looking for a career change or even fancy moving over to the UK to teach in some of the world’s best schools? Prospero Teaching has thousands of schools all over the country. Check here for our latest vacancies HERE

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