China Turns Its Mass Surveillance System Towards Young Students In Classrooms

China’s massive surveillance network already has its sights on just about every aspect of its citizens’ lives. Now, it is turning its attention to students by using something called “Smart Eye” to spy on children. If a student is not paying attention and is caught by the system, the teacher will be alerted to the fact. Authorities want these systems in every single classroom throughout the country.

One of the first institutions to install this system is Hangzhou Number 11 High School. The surveillance structure was apparently put in place back in March, Engadget reports, and it has been monitoring students ever since.

The system basically works by identifying seven facial expressions that students are likely to display. These are neutral, happy, sad, disappointed, angry, scared and surprised. The thinking behind targeting these specific expressions is that they can reveal if the student is actually paying attention in class or not. If they aren’t, the teachers are told about it and corrective measures are enforced.

Feedback with regards to the highly invasive monitoring system has been mixed. On the one hand, there is the international outcry against the Big Brother approach of educating children, but this isn’t anything new since it’s the same reaction to what China does to all of its citizens anyway. The headmaster of the school, however, seems to support the Smart Eye initiative since it supposedly improves performance among students.

That last part can have disturbing implications on its own since China’s education system is already quite demanding as it is, Futurism notes. Now, students are compelled to participate in class even more than before, which can actually have adverse health impacts.

The human brain needs to take a break from time to time, and this usually comes in the form of wandering thoughts. It should not be forced to focus on just one thing for extended periods of time.