Privacy and Online Monitoring and Filtering at Home

Is there monitoring software on the laptops at School?

School-issued laptops do not include website monitoring software by default. Regardless of the device, all employees and students’ digital footprints are monitored and logged using our campus web filter. If students are visiting inappropriate websites using the campus network., then they will be notified that the website was blocked. For more information, please review Blake School's Acceptable Use Policy which is available in the School's Family Handbook.

Can teachers monitor my laptop or access my Blake School files?

Teachers have remote access to your laptop while you are in class. On occasion, teachers will use laptop management software to manage your laptop during class at the upper school and at other times at the middle school. In addition, teachers have access to Blake managed Google Apps (Mail, Drive, Blogger, Sites, etc.) remotely. Your @blakeschool.org Google Apps are not private.

If my student is using a Blake school-owned computer, does that mean Blake is monitoring their use of it at home?

When students are away from school, we limit your kid's exposure to inappropriate content such as pornography. The nature of internet browsers and computer operating systems is such that a history of internet browsing is typically recorded somewhere on the laptop at all times though.

Can I install software for students to monitor their own productivity and goals for use?

We recommend students install the free RescueTime application on their laptops to generate use reports (Blake ISS technicians can help with this). An enhanced premium version of RescueTime with personal goal setting, site blocking, and detailed reporting is also available and recommended.

What do you recommend that we use at home to monitor our child’s use of their laptop or other devices?

Blake student parents and guardians often ask us for advice on how to monitor and regulate internet access at home. Over time, we have found software to be less and less reliable as the MacOS has become more and more secure. For more information, please read bit.ly/homefiltering.