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With the start of this school year RMHS administration has cracked down on the use of the new electronic pass system “Smart Pass” and also made it more accessible due to the lack of consistency and enforcement of it last year.
This year the start of school brought along some stricter rules regarding Smart Pass. In the class assemblies which took place over the first four days of school the slideshow being presented stated that students “must use Smart Pass and must have an active/approved pass to leave a room.” The presentation revealed to students that, “If you do not have a pass, you will earn a detention.”
Unlike last year each classroom in the school is now equipped with a “kiosk”–an electronic tablet–that students are able to create their passes on. That same slideshow instructed students that, “To use the bathroom or get water while in class, visit the kiosk and type in your name, select your destination, and use the facility. You must use the closest bathroom. You must be back in 5 minutes.”
The new pass system that RMHS implemented last year which replaced the traditional paper pass system requires students to now open an app to create a pass whenever they need to leave their classroom. RMHS teacher Mr. Albright commented, “It’s a little annoying because you have to have the technology, … and the internet doesn’t always work right.”
Last year when Smart Pass was first introduced to the high school it was a foreign application; students and teachers alike were unsure how to use it which led to inconsistent use of the new passes. The start of this new school year brought change and more instruction around how exactly to use it. Assistant Principal Ms. Flanagan said, “I hope that everybody will use it and I hope it will be easier to use.”
Sophomore Kendall Graves isn’t a fan of the system. “I think it’s creepy how they can track wherever you go around the school,” she said. Despite the pushback from some students, Smart Pass can be very helpful in times of emergency and has the potential to increase student safety when it is necessary to stop hallway movement and account for all students.
Smart Pass started as a small idea by entrepreneurs in the Philadelphia area and quickly exploded. According to the Smart Pass website students have been spending critical class time in the hallways during the day in schools everywhere. So, Smart Pass was created as a step towards controlling who is out of the room when and knowing where students are at all times. 10,000 principals are now using Smart Pass in their schools.
