Issued ID tags in middle school.

[PUZZLDY5]

My son is in the 8th grade and they are issuing ID tags for the students today. Really? This isn't a huge school. About 400 kids max, and we live in the country so to speak. Weird. Not totaly againt it just sort of wondering what the reasoning behind it would be. Anybody elses kid have to wear an ID tag to school?

 

[golfgal]

A lot of schools do this, it is easy to tell who belongs there an who doesn't. Our kids get an ID card but they don't have to wear an ID tag. All of the faculty and staff have to have their ID tags on and visible though.

 

[Rora]

When I was in middle school, we all had ID Badges. It had our name on it as well as our method of transportation home.

Honestly, I see nothing wrong with it. As a teacher now, it's helpful to know how the students get home (bus, parent pick up, walk, train, etc).

 

[Jennasis]

Wear one? We had ID cards in HS (class of 1200). To be honest I still have no idea what those student ID cards were for as we never seemed to use them for anything at all. Where would your 8th grader wear such a tag? What is the purpose of them?

 

[Shyvioletisme]

None of the middle schools around here have ID badges, however all students at the high schools must have theirs on at all times.

 

[Disney Doll]

Well, I am guessing that in this day and age, they want to just increase security.

Columbine wasn't in the middle of a big horrible city either...nor were most of the other school rampages that happened.

ID tags are a quick visual way of identifying that someone "belongs" there, whether it be teacher, student, support employees or a visitor...since I assume they will issue visitor badges too. Where I work every employee and "business related" visitor wears an ID badge and if you see someone who isn't wearing one and seems to be in areas where a visitor shouldn't be, we are required to inquire as to what they are doing...politely, of course, in a sort of "May I help you?" kind of way.

 

[jen0610]

Both my kids have id's that they are to wear. This is both middle and high school. It's not that big a deal for the kids. The id's are also their lunch, computer lab and library cards.

 

[PUZZLDY5]

Wear one? We had ID cards in HS (class of 1200). To be honest I still have no idea what those student ID cards were for as we never seemed to use them for anything at all. Where would your 8th grader wear such a tag? What is the purpose of them?

My high schooler has to have one in his wallet but not around his neck. My middle schooler has to wear a lanyard with his around his neck, starting tomorrow. Not real sure what the purpose is. It's got to be for some security reason or something but like I said, we live in a small town and everybody pretty much knows everybody.

 

[luvmy3]

Its just a safety issue. In a small country school just north of us, a man came in with a gun and held the principal hostage over some silly issue. The size or whereabouts of a school don't really make a difference when policies are put in place, you never know what could happen. An ID badge would make it easier, and quicker to be able to identify who should be there, and who should not.

 

[golfgal]

My high schooler has to have one in his wallet but not around his neck. My middle schooler has to wear a lanyard with his around his neck, starting tomorrow. Not real sure what the purpose is. It's got to be for some security reason or something but like I said, we live in a small town and everybody pretty much knows everybody.

I know in our kids' old school, they had problems with kids from the public school coming into the school building during school hours (skipping classes at their school or on some days when they didn't have school but we did). Not all the teachers know all the kids, even in a smaller school. It might very well just be a security measure that the school has adopted as prevention-or if they have recently undergone their accreditation process, that team may have suggested the tags?

 

[Christine]

I felt the same as you when my son's small private school got them. I think the photographer must have offered them to the school as part of the portrait deal or something. He was never required to wear it and it sat on our garage shelf most of the school year.

Now that my son's in high school, they do have them but they aren't required to wear them or even have them on them. But he does need to use it if he is buying lunch as it serves as a lunch debit card.

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

A lot of the schools are going to the kids wearing their IDs on lanyards to make sure who is supposed to be there is easily separated from those who are not. It's a safety issue.

And like I told my students when they started whining about wearing IDs, a lot of businesses have gone to staff wearing IDs (hospitals, business offices, etc.), you may as well get used to it. I had to wear one at almost every job I have had in my adult life - it's really no big deal.

And to jennasis: my school was a little bit bigger than yours (1800) and we used our IDs for EVERYTHING! Mostly to go out to lunch, but also in the cafeteria (to scan for your lunch account if you didn't do cash), borrow books from the library, get into after-game dances, etc. :

 

[dawson5]

My HS'ers wear them. Have to. From what I understand, everyone who comes into the school has to wear some sort of ID. Student, teacher, parent, etc. I think it's a quick thing, if you don't have an ID tag, who are you and why are you here? After school starts the doors are locked except for the ones designated for late arrivals, you have to sign in and either have your ID tag on or get one if you are a visitor.

My MS'er has one, does not have to wear it. I see that being implemented soon though. They have finally locked down the school. You have to ring a buzzer to get in. It used to be that only the front door was unlocked, right by the office. It worried me if someone was not in the office, you could easily walk in and no one would know you did.

 

[mjkacmom]

Our middle and high school have ID tags - if they forget them, they have detention. All staff must wear them as well. All of the schools are locked during the day. There is gang activity in neighboring towns.

 

[punkin]

DD12 has an ID tag with her picture. It is always at home. She never wears it. I think the only time she uses it is to get into a school dance.

 

[akcire]

There is a school district in the Chicago area, I think Palos Park, that has the kids wear ID's. At first I thought it was a crazy idea.

There was a news story about the whole thing and the ID's are scanned on & off the bus in addition to being worn as an all purpose card during the school day for lunch, library, etc. Not only could the parents track where the school bus was based on the tag, but it was also an easier way to make sure kids got on the "right" bus and all the kids were delivered to the "right" stop. The school district decided to do this after a kid was left on a bus--I know that the bus drivers do a walk thru; but if this helps ensure a kid is not left for hours on a bus in the Chicago winter, I think it is worth it.

 

[dawson5]

Our middle and high school have ID tags - if they forget them, they have detention. All staff must wear them as well. All of the schools are locked during the day. There is gang activity in neighboring towns.

After my oldest got his second detention for not wearing it, I threatened to scan it and make iron-ons for all his shirts. He hasn't had a detention since.

Hubby always said that detention for HS'ers are more like punishment for the parent. It's only 30 minutes and it takes 15 for us to get there. I think MS detentions are an hour.

 

[NHdisneylover]

Even in a small school there will be substitutes who do not know everyone. Also, if something were to happen and police need to come in they are not going to know everyone either. I can see where the lanyards could be useful (and as someone else said, they might as well get used to it as it is very common in the adult working world).

 

[jackskellingtonsgirl]

Our middle and high school students are required to wear a photo ID on a lanyard at all times. If they show up at school without it they have to pay $1 for a temp ID. If they lose it they have to pay $5 for a new badge. I know in middle school they were color coded by grade level. Now DS is in high school and the badges are color coded, but I don't think it is by grade. When DS got his textbooks they scanned the bar code from his ID. It would not surprise me if they also use that bar code for library books and such.

 

[daughtersrus]

Our schools have been doing this for as long as I can remember.

The ID was used to access her lunch money account as well as to show what bus she was to ride.

This is going back at least 13 years because DD is now 24yo. She's now teaching at a middle school and all of the students and staff have to wear their ID.

I actually thought that by now, all schools would be doing this.

There is a school district in the Chicago area, I think Palos Park, that has the kids wear ID's. At first I thought it was a crazy idea.

There was a news story about the whole thing and the ID's are scanned on & off the bus in addition to being worn as an all purpose card during the school day for lunch, library, etc. Not only could the parents track where the school bus was based on the tag, but it was also an easier way to make sure kids got on the "right" bus and all the kids were delivered to the "right" stop. The school district decided to do this after a kid was left on a bus--I know that the bus drivers do a walk thru; but if this helps ensure a kid is not left for hours on a bus in the Chicago winter, I think it is worth it.

Hey neighbor!

Our kids just have to show them to match the bus#.

I forgot about the GPS on the ID's. The district was Palos Heights. Here's a link to an article is anyone is interested. http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2010/08/gps-keeps-track-of-palos-heights-student-bus-riders.html

Our district was the first in Il to have seat belts on all buses. That was pretty expensive. I can imagine what the GPS system costs!