In response to the youth mental health crisis, many school districts are investing in software that monitors what students type on their school devicesmango win, alerting counselors if a child appears to be contemplating suicide or self-harm.
Such tools — produced by companies like Gaggle, GoGuardian Beacon, Bark and Securly — can pick up what a child types into a Google search, or a school essay, or an email or text message to a friend. Some of these alerts may be false alarms, set off by innocuous research projects or offhand comments, but the most serious alerts may prompt calls to parents or even home visits by school staff members or law enforcement.
I write about mental health for The New York Times, including the effects of social media use on children’s brains and algorithms that predict who is at risk for suicide. I’m interested in knowing more about how these monitoring tools are working in real life.
Get the best of The Times in your inboxSign up for Opinion Today:Get expert analysis of the news and a guide to the big ideas shaping the world every weekday morning. Sign up for The Great Read:On weekdays and Sundays, we recommend one piece of exceptional writing from The Times — a narrative or essay that takes you someplace you might not expect to go.Sign up for The Morning:Make sense of the news, every day, with David Leonhardt.If you are a student, parent, teacher or school administrator, I’d like to hear about your experiences. Do you think these tools have saved lives? Do they help students who are anxious or depressed get the care they need? Are you concerned about students’ privacy? Is there any cost to false positives?
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If you are having thoughts of suicidemango win, call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline or go to SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for a list of additional resources.
Share Your Experiences with Suicide Prevention Software Have you had any personal experience with suicide prevention software — as a parent, student, teacher, school administrator or mental health professional?*0 wordsWhat have you observed? Do you think these tools prevent suicides? Do they get students who are anxious or depressed the care they need?0 wordsDo you have any concerns about the privacy of students or families?0 wordsWhat is your name?*What is your email address?*Where do you live?*Error loading script.I am open to a New York Times journalist contacting me about other reporting projects.By clicking the submit button, you agree that you have read, understand and accept the Reader Submission Terms in relation to all of the content and other information you send to us (“Your Content”). If you do not accept these terms, do not submit any content. Of note:Your Content must not be false, defamatory, misleading or hateful, or infringe any copyright or any other third-party rights or otherwise be unlawful.We may use the contact details that you provide to verify your identity and answers to the questionnaire, as well as to contact you for further information on this story and future stories.Submit