I noticed in the news this week that a debate is taking place in Alberta over the consideration of selling naming rights to companies for school facilities and classrooms. The administration at the Calgary Board claims the funds are necessary to create classrooms that provide hands-on learning in technology education. (http://metronews.ca/news/calgary/428011/trustee-wants-corporate-sponsorship-in-cbe-schools-put-to-public-survey/) Thankfully, the NDP education critic, David Eggan, has opposed this measure - so someone is speaking up to keep corporate ads out of schools.
Advertising in schools is extremely problematic on a number of levels. First, schools are public spaces that should serve the public interest, not corporate interests. Additionally, allowing advertising in schools can pervert a school's primary function - teaching and learning. Choices should always be made based on pedagogy, but when free materials or free equipment is offered, school administrators feel pressured, particularly when budgets are slim.
Already, schools are full of advertising - on score boards in gymnasiums, on the Coke machines in the hallways, in the resources provided free of change to teachers (such as materials on loans and credit from VISA and videos on puberty from KOTEX). But children and teenagers are such a lucrative market that corporations and businesses want more.
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Here in BC a crafty entrepreneur has developed "Chatter High". It is a web site where teens answer quiz questions about companies and non-profit institutions and can use points to win prizes. To find the answer, they use a "hint" which tells them how to go to the company web site. So a student might spend ten or twenty minutes searching web sites to find the answers to get the points to win the prizes. Chatter High sells the rights to be on their service to local Victoria businesses. If you go into the Victoria airport, you will see giant billboards advertising to local businesses how they can purchase this service (see photos above). In the schools, daily announcements invite teens to sign on to Chatter High so they don't miss out on the prizes. I signed up for Chatter High, wondering if I would see Camosun College and UVic, but on my first visit the only educational institute was Sprott Shaw College, and the prizes were for local spas. Hardly the kind of thorough and useful information a student might want or need as part of their career development education. In essence, this profit making service is filtering what information is being marketed to students using school property and resources including the announcement system and the computer labs. They are making a business of selling access to students in schools. In an interview with the Saanich News, school Principal Judy Harrison had this to say to defend the use of this commercial product at Spectrum Community School: 'Harrison justifies the inclusion of businesses on the site, most which have no clear connection to education, since they’re merely providing incentives for students, such as gift certificates for gas or ferry travel.“I guess we’re all enticed by prizes,” Harrison said. “The (most) time was spent on answering the questions, so that’s where it was consistent.”' (http://www.saanichnews.com/news/159574585.html)
Across North America under funded school systems are facing increasing pressure to use advertising and charity to make up budget shortfalls. But these come with a very serious cost. In Seattle, when the Board proposed selling ads in schools, parents reacted strongly:
At a community meeting on the issue, one parent said, "Schools should be all about teaching students to make their own choices, not coercing them to buy things they don't need. Schools should not be selling my child as a consumer to corporations."
Another said, "We need less materialism in this country, not more. To 'teach' children that they 'need' unnecessary commercial products is morally wrong. That this is done on commercial television is bad enough. But to do it in a public school is reprehensible."
(http://www.ibiblio.org/commercialfree/commercialism.html)
Advertising in schools is extremely problematic on a number of levels. First, schools are public spaces that should serve the public interest, not corporate interests. Additionally, allowing advertising in schools can pervert a school's primary function - teaching and learning. Choices should always be made based on pedagogy, but when free materials or free equipment is offered, school administrators feel pressured, particularly when budgets are slim.
Already, schools are full of advertising - on score boards in gymnasiums, on the Coke machines in the hallways, in the resources provided free of change to teachers (such as materials on loans and credit from VISA and videos on puberty from KOTEX). But children and teenagers are such a lucrative market that corporations and businesses want more.
.JPG)
Here in BC a crafty entrepreneur has developed "Chatter High". It is a web site where teens answer quiz questions about companies and non-profit institutions and can use points to win prizes. To find the answer, they use a "hint" which tells them how to go to the company web site. So a student might spend ten or twenty minutes searching web sites to find the answers to get the points to win the prizes. Chatter High sells the rights to be on their service to local Victoria businesses. If you go into the Victoria airport, you will see giant billboards advertising to local businesses how they can purchase this service (see photos above). In the schools, daily announcements invite teens to sign on to Chatter High so they don't miss out on the prizes. I signed up for Chatter High, wondering if I would see Camosun College and UVic, but on my first visit the only educational institute was Sprott Shaw College, and the prizes were for local spas. Hardly the kind of thorough and useful information a student might want or need as part of their career development education. In essence, this profit making service is filtering what information is being marketed to students using school property and resources including the announcement system and the computer labs. They are making a business of selling access to students in schools. In an interview with the Saanich News, school Principal Judy Harrison had this to say to defend the use of this commercial product at Spectrum Community School: 'Harrison justifies the inclusion of businesses on the site, most which have no clear connection to education, since they’re merely providing incentives for students, such as gift certificates for gas or ferry travel.“I guess we’re all enticed by prizes,” Harrison said. “The (most) time was spent on answering the questions, so that’s where it was consistent.”' (http://www.saanichnews.com/news/159574585.html)
Across North America under funded school systems are facing increasing pressure to use advertising and charity to make up budget shortfalls. But these come with a very serious cost. In Seattle, when the Board proposed selling ads in schools, parents reacted strongly:
At a community meeting on the issue, one parent said, "Schools should be all about teaching students to make their own choices, not coercing them to buy things they don't need. Schools should not be selling my child as a consumer to corporations."
Another said, "We need less materialism in this country, not more. To 'teach' children that they 'need' unnecessary commercial products is morally wrong. That this is done on commercial television is bad enough. But to do it in a public school is reprehensible."
(http://www.ibiblio.org/commercialfree/commercialism.html)
An interesting quote on their website from Greater Victoria School District Superintendent.
ReplyDeleteChatterHigh.com is a resource-filled website that offers learning and an inclusive method of much-needed fundraising. Students are learning and exploring relevant resources for post-secondary education and career information.
John Gaiptman
Superintendent of Schools, School District 61
I am the question provider for Camosun College and I have had nothing but positive feedback from all the teachers, counsellors, students, and parents that I have talked to about Chatter High. These quizes are a way for high school students to gain important information about post-secondary and career opportunities. There are numerous options for students after they graduate from high school, and I know that if I had the option to do a short quiz, which helped me learn about college/university, while also having the chance to win a prize and earn money for my school, I would have started thinking about post-secondary at a much earlier age. In addition to that, I have noticed that the competitions foster school spirit as high schools compete against each other for Camosun's $1250, $750, and $500 cash prizes, which we awarded to Spectrum Community School, Claremont Secondary, and Parkland Secondary last year. It is each high school's decision whether they will participate in Chatter High, but I have found that it is an interactive way for youth to get engaged and excited about pursuing higher education.
ReplyDeleteKind regards
Well, I think it is a sad commentary if "school spirit" has to come through winning prizes on a commercial web site. What about a collective school activity to do something positive for the world or for children or others suffering from malnutrition or war? Chatter high is selective - only those institutions that purchase the service will be shown to teens, so they are getting a restricted view of their options. Public schools should be telling our children all of their options, not just about the ones who will pay for in-school advertising. This system also teaches children to respond to cash prizes rather than their own curiosity about their futures and interests. Everything about it is wrong, in my opinion.
DeleteI am a teacher in the Lower Mainland who has started using ChatterHigh.com has a quick resource for Planning 10. As you may know, Planning 10 has 4 main organizers: Graduation Program and Graduation Transitions, Finance, Health, and Education and Careers. I find the questions posed on this website do align with learning outcomes and it is a fun, easy, independent way for students to "see what's out there". The points/prize system is a motivator but not the sole reason I use the website on occasion. As with anything, if the students and parents register on ChatterHigh, it is optional.
ReplyDeleteHow is reading this (just copied from my Chatter High account) part of Planning 10? It is an advertisement.
Delete"Value $25 One Tooth Activewear (formerly OTFitwear) proudly offers 80% Canadian made, high quality yoga/run/fitness/dance wear. Womens & mens apparel. We are across from Pagliacci's near Fort & Broad St in downtown Victoria. 1006 Broad St. 250-388-7071"
It's called a prize description, so people know what they are entering for.
DeleteI have taken a number of the quizzes and found that they are very appropriate for Planning 10, providing information about post-secondary programs. The goal, as I see it, is to expand students' knowledge about what is available to them after graduation, and encourage them to pursue their post-secondary dreams. What the writer has failed to understand is that the "businesses" are simply donating prizes. They are not selling anything to the students. I highly doubt that the students would even take the time to find out more about those businesses.
ReplyDeleteJane Hayhoe
Yale Secondary
Some donate prizes, others purchase the service and submit questions, and many of these are private businesses, such as Sprott Shaw College and BC Turkey Farmers. Some information is useful, some is not. All of it is paid advertising. I don't believe the inclusion of some non-profits makes the rest ok.
DeleteHere is question 1 and 3 from today's quiz:
Question 1/10
Shawn has been producing turkeys since 1992. His farm is one of the largest in BC. How many staff does he have on the farm?
1 man farm 3 man farm 10 man farm 15 man farm
Click here for a hint and earn 50 points
Question 3/10
Island Sexual Health Society provides free condoms to anyone who needs them. How many steps do we list for proper condom use?
Ten Seven Fourteen One
Click here for a hint and earn 50 points
I'm disappointed to be reading this about ChatterHigh. To me, it does not appear that the writer has even taken the time to do their research on ChatterHigh. If you had taken the time to actually do the quizzes, you would know that they take perhaps between 5 - 10 mins. in total to complete. When you click on the hint link, it takes you straight to the page where you will find the answer. Not all questions are post education related, some are about health, jobs etc. There are many options for kids after they graduate from school and not all kids are going to go on to post education. All kids need to know what is available to them out there, regardless of how that information is transmitted. ChatterHigh is just another tool to help students with their decisions once they have graduated. Individual schools will never be able to get all of the necessary info. out to students about life after graduation and I for one, am thankful there are other resources to help them. I am a parent of 2 girls that graduated from Spectrum Community School last June and yes, we won both competitions. It was great to see the whole school come together and support their 2012 graduating class in the hopes of winning this money to put on the school's first Dry Grad Event. To me, this is "School Spirit" and I see no difference if they had come together to do something for the community or for their school. They did it collectively and had fun doing it. Being able to enter draws to win some fabulous prizes was a nice bonus, but if you chose not to enter draws, you didn't have too. For our school, it was about winning the competitions, winning prizes was secondary. Is it really any different than the school using announcements to talk about Camosun College, or UVIC than using it to talk about ChatterHigh? I know a few students who changed their or made up their minds about their career paths because of ChatterHigh. Had it not been for ChatterHigh, who knows where these kids might have ended up. When I was doing the quizzes on a daily basis, I learnt a lot of information that I otherwise knew nothing about. On some of the websites, I would minimize the window to go back to the site later to have a look and learn some more and perhaps pass that information on to my kids. Most of our students did their quizzes at home, not using the school's computers. I'm sure lots of kids log on to their Facebook, email or twitter accounts at school, so why not ChatterHigh? At least they would be learning something useful!! Who are you to decide what information is useful and what is not? Isn't that up to the individual user to decide? Do you know for a fact that ChatterHigh is making a profit? Do you know for a fact that ChatterHigh is Corporate Sponsored Advertising? I strongly suggest that you do your research on ChatterHigh before you berate them for trying to do something good for our high school students.
ReplyDeleteOn a final note, Spectrum Community School was so impressed with ChatterHigh and the good that they are doing, that we invited this crafty businessman to be our keynote speaker at our 2012 Graduation Ceremony.
Keep up the good work ChatterHigh, you are doing great things for our students!!
I agree that students should be aware of options for after graduation...that is why we have Planning 10, Graduationa Transitions, and counselling services. Teachers and school counsellors can collect information in an unbiased manner, that truly does provide students with their full range of options. Chatter High only provides information of the businesses who purchase their services.
DeletePlanning 10 classes all vary from school to school. Taking planning 10 in Grade 10 or in some cases, kids take it in Grade 11, that is a huge time difference between Grade 10 and Grade 12. Kids just want to get the class over and done with as fast as they can. We are talking high school students here, most who can't wait to be done with school and most who don't seek the services of counsellors or other options available to them. Do teachers and schools have all the information and I do mean all, to pass on to kids? At least with ChatterHigh, they actually had to read in order to answer the questions and learnt at the same time. A lot of the kids at our school would never have been made aware of some of the options available to them had it not been for doing their ChatterHigh quizzes.
ReplyDelete