UK unis fingerprinting foreign students to check attendance
How would you like to be fingerprinted every time you go to lectures? It's a new move to make sure foreign students are fulfilling visa conditions by attending lectures.
It's been adopted by two universities and condenmed by many others:
Sunderland University and Ulster University have both defended the implementation, which was introduced following Home Office demands international student attendance be strictly monitored.
Full article on HuffPo
Thoughts?
It's been adopted by two universities and condenmed by many others:
Sunderland University and Ulster University have both defended the implementation, which was introduced following Home Office demands international student attendance be strictly monitored.
Full article on HuffPo
Thoughts?
Scroll to see replies
Original post by Milostar
How would you like to be fingerprinted every time you go to lectures? It's a new move to make sure foreign students are fulfilling visa conditions by attending lectures.
It's been adopted by two universities and condenmed by many others:
Full article on HuffPo
Thoughts?
It's been adopted by two universities and condenmed by many others:
Full article on HuffPo
Thoughts?
Biometric identification, such as fingerprinting is commonplace in society these days. Many employers use biometrics to monitor timekeeping and attendance in the workplace, why shouldn't the universities and the Home Office? If it prevents abuse of student visas then I'm in favour.
I have to fingerprint to clock in and out of work. (British Citizen) so I don't see why people shouldn't have to do it for lectures and stuff?
But if you're going to fingerprint students to see if they're keeping to their visa, why not just fingerprint all students to see that they're keeping up with their contact hours, etc?
But if you're going to fingerprint students to see if they're keeping to their visa, why not just fingerprint all students to see that they're keeping up with their contact hours, etc?
Sounds like a good idea to me, you're doomed if you do fingerprint and you're most likely doomed of you don't because I'm sure there's still plenty of people who abuse the current system
I'm a little surprised that response so far have been so pragmatic about it 
Does this mean that you're generally ok with biometric monitoring?
It seems unfair that foreign students are singled out. Even if home students are freer to skip lectures, some classes require attendance, and I'm sure attendance data would be useful for universities, so why not introduce it for everyone instead of just one group?
Does this mean that you're generally ok with biometric monitoring?It seems unfair that foreign students are singled out. Even if home students are freer to skip lectures, some classes require attendance, and I'm sure attendance data would be useful for universities, so why not introduce it for everyone instead of just one group?
It won't be long till we're all being fingerprinted..
Original post by Milostar
I'm a little surprised that response so far have been so pragmatic about it Does this mean that you're generally ok with biometric monitoring?
It seems unfair that foreign students are singled out. Even if home students are freer to skip lectures, some classes require attendance, and I'm sure attendance data would be useful for universities, so why not introduce it for everyone instead of just one group?
Does this mean that you're generally ok with biometric monitoring?It seems unfair that foreign students are singled out. Even if home students are freer to skip lectures, some classes require attendance, and I'm sure attendance data would be useful for universities, so why not introduce it for everyone instead of just one group?
Uni's are being pressured into keeping track of those on visas but not other students. We had fingerprints to pay for lunch at a school I went to and most the time it was quick enough but it did have problems when it took ages. In a group of 200 students lets say for 180 of them it takes 30 seconds and the rest take 3 minutes. That's a long wait before you can begin your lecture or a lot of expense to get sufficient scanners in to do 30+ at a time.
They may be more reliable now or far cheaper than I realise I guess though. If they're cheap enough the ideal situation would be on scanner by each seat or perhaps one at each end of a row and make all students do it.
Foreign students are being singled out because a lot of them stay in the country illegally after their degree, leaving the British taxpayer to foot the bill
Posted from TSR Mobile
Posted from TSR Mobile
Original post by FreedomCostsTax
It won't be long till we're all being fingerprinted..
Yes... The obvious link. You've discovered their intentions.
I used to clock in and out and work with a fingerprint scanner. It was easy and probably faster than the method currently in place (queuing up to sign in or getting forms checked by professors after lectures).
As a system, I'm not too fussed by the thought of it. As a UK student I'd rather sign in my with ID card than sign a register, but I wouldn't mind too much about other methods like fingerprints. What are they going to do... Know I'm in lectures? (Hint: They already do).
Original post by Milostar
I'm a little surprised that response so far have been so pragmatic about it Does this mean that you're generally ok with biometric monitoring?
It seems unfair that foreign students are singled out. Even if home students are freer to skip lectures, some classes require attendance, and I'm sure attendance data would be useful for universities, so why not introduce it for everyone instead of just one group?
Does this mean that you're generally ok with biometric monitoring?It seems unfair that foreign students are singled out. Even if home students are freer to skip lectures, some classes require attendance, and I'm sure attendance data would be useful for universities, so why not introduce it for everyone instead of just one group?
It's commonplace in industry and it's not any more invasive than having to sign in with a pen.
I think ALL students should be fingerprinted for attendance and time-keeping.
Lectures though today one has to pay fees towards receive huge amounts of taxpayer subsidies and by not attending lectures simply mean money is being wasted.
Should be used for time keeping as well as too damn many walk into a classroom late and are disruptive to the class in progress.
Lectures though today one has to pay fees towards receive huge amounts of taxpayer subsidies and by not attending lectures simply mean money is being wasted.
Should be used for time keeping as well as too damn many walk into a classroom late and are disruptive to the class in progress.
It's a shame because the ones are dedicated to the course are get this affect them. I'm not saying it screws them over but it could be interpreted as an us/them thing. Maybe it would just make sense to have fingerprint registers for everyone.
I don't think there's anything wrong with biometric fingerprints, however they should be across the board for stuff like seminars or smaller classes. It would be absurd to fingerprint lectures which aren't really compulsory.
Doesn't particularly work in situations such as tutorials where there are many buildings and about 100 rooms in each that would be a lot of scanners to buy for something that you can do with pen and paper.
I think this is a good idea. If a student is granted entry, into the country on the premise that they will be attending university, then it should be monitored and biometric fingerprinting seems the best way of completing that monitoring.
Could you not have a roaming mobile unit for a set of rooms? We had something similar at my sixth form.
Original post by lyrical_lie
x
Could you not have a roaming mobile unit for a set of rooms? We had something similar at my sixth form.
(edited 10 years ago)
I don't think it's a bad thing, little different to using my library card to get into the library (I think most, if not all, universities have card-limited access of some kind).
Probably easier actually. You can't really forget your fingerprint or leave it in your other wallet. I wouldn't really have an issue with it, although I do disagree with students being monitored actively when it isn't a legal requirement as part of their visa. Where possible it's nice to leave people to make up their own minds. I'll happily be fingerprinted on my way in, but as a UK student I don't want the admin department sending me silly emails telling me off when I don't go.
And I'd be tempted to put money on it breaking/failing constantly. Universities don't tend to be very good at implementation and it'll probably take a year before they're reliable.
Probably easier actually. You can't really forget your fingerprint or leave it in your other wallet. I wouldn't really have an issue with it, although I do disagree with students being monitored actively when it isn't a legal requirement as part of their visa. Where possible it's nice to leave people to make up their own minds. I'll happily be fingerprinted on my way in, but as a UK student I don't want the admin department sending me silly emails telling me off when I don't go.
And I'd be tempted to put money on it breaking/failing constantly. Universities don't tend to be very good at implementation and it'll probably take a year before they're reliable.
(edited 10 years ago)
I don't see any sense in this, why?
a) A Foreign student should have the same right to choose wether attending the lecture benefits him or not. Some students simply learn more in the library and for those it really would be unfair.
b) You could just force them to appear each week in the registrar to confirm that they are still at university and not already changed to living somewhere illegaly. That should be totally sufficient to get the police the time they need to react, should be much easier to organise and wouldn't single them out at every lectures.
c) You will not see what the student is doing outside lectures and refarding how less contact time you can have in some courses, I really don't see any advantage except of singleling foreigners out and satisfy people from the far right.
a) A Foreign student should have the same right to choose wether attending the lecture benefits him or not. Some students simply learn more in the library and for those it really would be unfair.
b) You could just force them to appear each week in the registrar to confirm that they are still at university and not already changed to living somewhere illegaly. That should be totally sufficient to get the police the time they need to react, should be much easier to organise and wouldn't single them out at every lectures.
c) You will not see what the student is doing outside lectures and refarding how less contact time you can have in some courses, I really don't see any advantage except of singleling foreigners out and satisfy people from the far right.
Original post by Milostar
I'm a little surprised that response so far have been so pragmatic about it Does this mean that you're generally ok with biometric monitoring?
It seems unfair that foreign students are singled out. Even if home students are freer to skip lectures, some classes require attendance, and I'm sure attendance data would be useful for universities, so why not introduce it for everyone instead of just one group?
Does this mean that you're generally ok with biometric monitoring?It seems unfair that foreign students are singled out. Even if home students are freer to skip lectures, some classes require attendance, and I'm sure attendance data would be useful for universities, so why not introduce it for everyone instead of just one group?
It seems unfair that our immigration system is being sidestepped by the university visa route.
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