Google Tools Meets Middle School

Internet Safety with Google Admin Console

Teachers: Contact your tech coordinator because this is a real deal. 

Your Google Suite Administrator of the Domain has the ability to put students in a "penalty box." This means when the hormones kick in around 8th to 9th grade and students start to explore anatomy during their "independent study time" Google Admins or their designees can place certain students into a restricted category where only whitelisted websites are viewable. This not only happens inside the school filters but also at home. It works by managing Chromebooks through the Google Admin Console. 

In the case of Westside High School in Jonesboro, Arkansas where I am the principal we have 715 students take home their school-issued Chromebooks. We have a general rule that if a student messes up and looks up a boob or call's Sally fat using the school device that we manage, then we punish, redirect and provide tools for the offending student to overcome this negative use of technology. We do not take the technology away. It is the way they learn, just like a textbook. I am sure I would be immediately fired if I took away each student's pencil or pen when they write a dirty note on their books or paper. How is it different with technology?

So, in order to keep Johnny learning and using technology to do so, we place them in the box for a limited time. We whitelist Google Slides, Gmail, Docs, Sheets and other essential websites, even when they go home on their own Internet without our CIPA filters, it is blocked on through the Chromebook Management Console. 

Ask your Google Apps Administrator about this. We currently have our assistant principal managing this when teachers report students off task or looking at inappropriate content while in class.