Education chat transcript
Globe reporter Maria Sacchetti chatted with Boston.com readers about an idea floating around Taunton's school system that would enable students to pay for lunch through fingerprint scans. Maria_Sacchetti: Hello! Here is an update for today's story: I heard from Nantucket this morning that they started using finger-scan technology a couple of years ago to speed up the lunch lines in the elementary and middle and high schools on the island. They also let parents log-on from their home computers to check their account balances and monitor what their children eat.
ricardo_montalbon: Do any other school districts in the US use this method? I'd be curious to see the effects it has.
Maria_Sacchetti: Hundreds of school systems nationwide use finger-scanning technology to pay for lunch. Some also use it to check out library books or take attendance. Nantucket uses it and says it has made the lunch line move faster, and cut down on telephone calls from parents because they can check account balances online. The Vermont school system in the article also is happy with it. They like the notion that parents can quietly monitor what their children eat -- especially if they are concerned about eating disorders or other issues.
1984_was_real: Why not just have school ID cards that work as debit cards? Parents could check the balance and purchases, and the state/school could feed in $ to the poor kids. I worked at a university for 5 years that did this with no discernable problems.
Maria_Sacchetti: Hi! Many parents raised the same question. School officials say students -- elementary school kids especially -- often lose the cards or forget their lunch money. So this makes it easier for them. Thanks for the question!
robert: Most identity thefts thankfully deal exclusively with adults, but this plan seems to open children to the dangers of ID theft (not to mention having their personal information accessible to thieves). How does the school plan to counter this threat?
Maria_Sacchetti: School and company officials say the students' fingerprint is not stored in the computer, just a numeric representation of it. Schools also point out that they already store students' personal information on computers and so far haven't had anything stolen. But parents clearly are concerned about this. Thanks!
big_bro: Scanning children's fingerprints so they can EAT!! This is so clearly a violation of privacy, is the Bush administration behind this!!!???
Maria_Sacchetti: This was a local decision by the school committee. Also, Massachusetts doesn't have any laws governing this issue, but states such as Iowa and Illinois have passed laws on the matter. Thanks for the question!
1984_was_real: This seems -- in my mind -- to be the equiv. to using Soc. Security #s for ID purposes, which is generally verboten. Are these similar? Could they be in the future? Thanks.
Maria_Sacchetti: Interesting question. The number will be unique to each student. School officials say they are only planning to use it for lunch. But there are other possibilities: taking attendance, checking out library books, etc. And the use of biometrics elsewhere is becoming more routine. Megachurches use it to take attendance. Some supermarkets let customers use it to buy groceries. It will be interesting to see what the future will bring. Thanks for the question!
Dougie_D: Has the ACLU filed a lawsuit yet? Isn't this right up their America-hating alley?
Maria_Sacchetti: No. The ACLU said they are not against technology. But they are raising concerns about privacy and identity theft. They wonder whether the risks, whatever they are, are really worth the price of lunch.
Maria_Sacchetti: Thank you for all the questions!
