Professor warns students about exactly how much private information available to them
"I know many students don't understand all of the ways they're being tracked."
Professor warns students of available private information
College is generally a time where kids are feeling much more freedom than they're used to. They're finally able to come and go as they please, stay out as late as they want and sleep in as long as they feel like it without immediately having to answer to a parent. It's a mix of freedom and privacy that nearly every adolescent craves and as long as they do well in classes, no one asks too many questions.
Well, about that privacy, professors are saying not so fast in feeling untethered. Apparently the software used on many college campuses is not just for submitting assignments or downloading readings. After a recent article was published by The Markup titled, He Wanted Privacy. His College Gave Him None. written by Tara García Mathewson, college professor and doctoral candidate Victoria Alexander took to social media to help ring the alarm.
There's some level of privacy expected while attending college but according to Alexander, that privacy is simply an illusion. The educational software the schools use not only track when you log on, off and how long you spend logged into the site, it tells so much more. It lets professors know where you logged on from, what materials you accessed and how long you accessed the material. But the lack of privacy doesn't stop there according to Alexander and Mathewson.
"Those are just what I can see as a professor. The general university surveillance can see many other things," Alexander explains. "If your phone's connected to university WiFi they can tell where you're going on the internet and where you're physically going on campus. Many universities also use facial recognition through their security cameras so they know where you are in person and they know where you are online and if you've logged into your social media they can also know what you're up to on there and what your friends are sharing."
This information gathering isn't just for the universities to use, some may also sell it. And this isn't something that college campuses are forthcoming about or really give students the option to opt out.
"Still, whether living on campus or off, taking classes in person or remotely, students simply cannot opt out of most data collection and still pursue a degree," Mathewson says in The Markup.
@victoria_phd #stitch with @The Markup 💥 Read: He Wanted Privacy. His College Gave Him None by Tara García Mathewson #Surveillance #Privacy #DataPrivacy #MarkupPartner #SchoolSurveillance
Some professors let it be known in the comments of Alexander's video that they don't use the excess information provided by the learning management systems.
"I make it a point not to use this information against my students. They're adults, they can lie, I will judge their work and participation," one professor writes.
"I choose not to access ANY of this info about my students. They're adults, I'm not their keeper," another professor says.
While it's great that most of the professors who revealed themselves in the comments aren't using this private information, the average commenter was flabbergasted and a bit upset that it's available.
"There's actually zero justification for my professor knowing my location...like ever. I'm an adult who's PAYING to be there," one person says.
"Help me out, why would any college or university need access to that kind of information? How is that not an invasion of privacy," someone asks.
"So you're telling me universities are practically FBI agents," another person questions.
Certainly this isn't something that is advertised when taking college tours and surely if students knew how much they were being monitored, many tech savvy kids would find a way around most of it. But when using facial recognition and location tracking via student IDs it may be a bit more tricky. Either way it seems the concerns raised are valid and something that may need to be discussed before sending your student off to college in the fall.
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There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
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Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for information—not just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimic…could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if they’ve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESL—but English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I don’t know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! I’m 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."