Go Guardian parental app aimed to generate conversations on responsible Internet usage

Any spooky things in your search history? Do you really want your parents taking a peak at your recent online activity? As technology advances, concerns arise over appropriate use of devices, but especially Chromebooks in the Oshkosh Area School District (OASD). 

Students aren’t always aware of the consequences and dangers of internet use, which led to the creation of the GoGuardian service, an application that allows teachers to monitor and control student internet usage during class hours. Recently, however, the stakes were raised when the GoGuardian parent app was released as an add-on to give parents access to the screens of their children’s district-issued devices. 

This app was implemented through the efforts of Deputy Superintendent David Gundlach.

“It allows a parent to go ahead and look at the activity the child has on their Chromebook in the last day, week, and month,” he said. “Parents have the ability to filter or shut down access if they deem it inappropriate. It allows them to see what kind of activity there is, filter out certain sites they don’t want them to use, and set time limits.”

Principal Erin Kohl appreciates the control the new app gives parents over what their students use their Chromebook for.

“If I was a parent of a high school student, I could say, ‘you're working on homework right now so I'm going to make sure you're working on homework’,” she said. “If my child decides to watch a Youtube video or movie, then I would be able to know what was happening and could redirect them, also if I had concerns about my child going on inappropriate websites.”

The filters that parents set during out of school hours only remain for that time period. In the school day, the school GoGuardian overrides the parental controls.

“During the school day, our normal filtering rules are enforced,” Gundlach said. “They exist in the evening as well, but what the parent can do is become more restrictive when the student is at home.”

The controls were implemented partially out of parental concerns.

“When kids are bringing home Chromebooks, there are concerns like, ‘you’re putting a device in my child's hands that they can use for things other than school,” Kohl said. “I know there are parents who have concerns about what their students are doing on their Chromebooks, what they’re consuming, that they're on them really late, and that they’re not getting enough sleep.”

The responses from parents and students have been positive and negative, respectively.

“I do know I've got a handful of thank yous from parents because they had been wanting to do this,” Gundlach said. “We have several parents who were very happy and a couple students who weren’t so happy. They weren't thrilled to learn that parents were able to see what they were doing. But that’s par for the course, I think.”

Spanish teacher Alyssa Gauthier has a personal viewpoint.

“Initially, as a parent, I think it's a good thing,” she said. “I know students don’t feel the same way, and my students were definitely complaining about it. But I think it’s good, actually, as a parent to have the ability to look into something if you might need to. My initial thoughts were cool, I like that feature.”

Having children of her own, Gauthier knows there is a fine line to walk concerning personal boundaries.

“You want your kid to feel like you trust them, but kids are kids,” she said. “Their frontal cortex isn't fully developed, so sometimes they need adult intervention even though they don’t know they need it. I could see it creating tension, but hopefully when kids grow up, they realize their parents were doing things in the best interest of the child.”

Students like senior Leo Ebben have some concerns about the ways the app might be misused.

“I know a lot of parents will abuse it because it’s not necessarily just for academic purposes,” he said. “People use their Chromebooks for things outside of school if they don’t have any other personal devices. It can create a negative relationship because you need to have your own personal space outside of your parents.”

Despite these concerns, the app’s original intent was to provide parents with a safeguard for their children while navigating the internet, raising a generation of respectful and careful web surfers. 

“Part of it is also teaching students how to appropriately use the internet,” Gundlach said. “There are a lot of things that are awesome for you on your Chromebook, but there's also things that are pretty scary and dangerous. That’s a growing concern and something we’re really trying to teach students as they go through school.”

Gundlach hopes this provides a closer relationship between parents and students to talk about sensitive topics that otherwise would not be addressed. 

“I think it’s going to force some conversations and conversations are always a good thing,” he said. “The more conversations there are between parents and students, the higher the trust level. Parents know their children the best and are best equipped to raise their kids. We never want to get involved in any of that, but we do want to give parents as much information as possible to help them when they have questions.”

Kohl believes the GoGuardian app serves as a tool to foster closer relationships and conscious online habits, in an ever changing, technologically advanced world. 

“Really, what you would use something like this for is to help your child grow and learn about the world around them and what things are safe and not safe,” she said.

by Abby Furcy and Nyle Dar

Published October 31, 2022

Oshkosh West Index Volume 119 Issue II