San Antonio Schools Tracking Students With RFID Chips
Two schools have installed computer chips in their ID cars to track attendance for state funding
Privacy's last stand is taking place not far from The Alamo in Texas right now, to hear some people tell it. Two schools in San Antonio have begun tracking students using radio-enabled computer chips embedded in their ID cards, allowing administrators to know the precise whereabouts of their charges on campus—be it in class, in the bathroom, in a stairwell or AWOL—all while sitting at a computer.
The stated purpose of the so-called RFID ID cards is simple: Because state aid is based on attendance, and the chips help schools count kids, tracking equals funding. The district also says the technology makes kids safer.