Student Hacks to an A

[highwizard]

Originally posted by ck3k
I find my spelling quite ammusing at times, my friend got me the "I am a Porgrammar" shirt, I work with computers not words.:D

As long as your friend is putting a smile on your face, that is all that matters.

[highwizard]

Article

This is the article I was looking for:

Fifty-four percent of U.S. schools rely on students to provide technical
support for their computer systems, according to a report titled "Are We
There Yet?" (http://www.nsbf.org/thereyet/index.htm), released yesterday by
the National School Boards Foundation. In 43% of the 811 districts surveyed,
students troubleshoot for hardware, software and other problems, and 39% of
the districts, students are tasked with setting up equipment and
wiring. Nearly as many districts also report that students perform technical
maintenance. The fact that students are providing so much hands-on
assistance is viewed as a "win-win" situation by John Bailey, director of
education technology for the Department of Education. Their tech savvy helps
compensate for a dearth of tech support funding in school budgets and
teachers who are "unevenly prepared for using technology as a tool for
teaching and learning," according to the NSBF, which reports that 69% of the
survey respondents rated new teachers as average or novices in computer
skills. The role reversal signals a shift in the relationship between
teachers and students as online lessons become integrated into the school
curriculum, says Anne Bryant, executive director of the National School
Boards Association: "Teachers become the guide on the side, instead of the
sage on the stage." [AP 5 Jun 2002; NewsScan Daily, 6 June 2002]
http://apnews.excite.com/article/200...D7JV8EP00.html

[Tierra]

I was one of those students, I didn't mind doing the work for the special privileges. I may not of been paid in cash for the work I did, but it all paid off in one or another way. The faculty actually setup a "hidden" class just like any other class minus it wasn't posted as a class kids join sign up for without prior knowledge of it and permission from only one specific teacher (our network administrator/teacher). Me and 3 of my friends got signed up for the class (a total of 4 students class) and got a nice garuanteed A for doing tech support. The class was justified not only cuz of that, but was mainly setup for us to work on the school website. I found that the more involved I got in the network help and setup, the more access I had my hands on, and I had also found a nice excel spreadsheet with a list of all the teachers and their passwords somewhere (forget about trying to brute force). I could go into any of the PowerGrade system and change grades, and knew the whole school's network layout along with it's weaknesses (of which I patched up a few).

[astcell]

Those classes usually fall under Student Service. I used to work in the cafeteria, on the yearbook staff, in the bookroom, even as a hall monitor where I got to wear a sash and rat on people getting into their lockers at lunch.

I think there is a Simpson's character based on me.

[blackwave]

Originally posted by astcell
I think there is a Simpson's character based on me.

Yeah Ned Flanders, it is the mustache... and how you always say hickly-dickly

[TwinVega]

Originally posted by Tierra
I was one of those students, I didn't mind doing the work for the special privileges. I may not of been paid in cash for the work I did, but it all paid off in one or another way. ... I had my hands on, and I had also found a nice excel spreadsheet with a list of all the teachers and their passwords somewhere (forget about trying to brute force). I could go into any of the PowerGrade system and change grades, and knew the whole school's network layout along with it's weaknesses (of which I patched up a few).

That's all fine and dandy but the more you know about the network and access to grades, the more you are suspected when something gets hacked.

[blackwave]

Originally posted by TwinVega
That's all fine and dandy but the more you know about the network and access to grades, the more you are suspected when something gets hacked.

yup yup... always hate being the first person to get the gestapo treatment...

[astcell]

Originally posted by blackwave
yup yup... always hate being the first person to get the gestapo treatment...

Then you have to be the first person to GIVE the Gestapo treatment. It really throws suspicion off of you.

[blackwave]

yeah though it seems to go into a circular device :( ...

[octalpus]

Originally posted by astcell
Those classes usually fall under Student Service. I used to work in the cafeteria, on the yearbook staff, in the bookroom, even as a hall monitor where I got to wear a sash and rat on people getting into their lockers at lunch.

I think there is a Simpson's character based on me.

I think there's an entire series of movies based on people like you...

Were you in the A/V club, too?

**octalpussy takes wagers on the quality of astcell's social life during those formative years**

[astcell]

Originally posted by octalpussy
I think there's an entire series of movies based on people like you...

Were you in the A/V club, too?

**octalpussy takes wagers on the quality of astcell's social life during those formative years**

Wow that brings back memories...I was one of only three strudents in 7th grade qualified to run ALL the projectors that the school had, and I was the one blessed by running it for the PTA and other parents and large group meetings (I could splice a break in under a minute).

I never knew I was missing a social life, not until Defcon 8....

[blackwave]

Originally posted by octalpussy
I think there's an entire series of movies based on people like you...

I think they also have a dedicated short yellow bus... ;)

[astcell]

Sorry BW, people like us get our Mensa cards before finishing high school, that is, if we don't just get our diploma after 7th grade...

[psyiode]

I was first introduced to linux at school by a cuple of older students which were allowed to setup a linux server to play around with. After they left the server was hacked and suddenly i was the most knowledgable person on campus so i went from there....they gave me access to everytinhg and for the next 3 years i dedicated countless hours to help out....before i was givin official access and all i was having a blast finding flaws in everytihng and just a few months before i became involved i had managed to print out a list of usernames and passwords (about 400 social security numbers) for everyone in the school..i had no interest in causing any harm and never did...it was just so awesome to be able to do that...then they gave me access to everytihng which takes all the fun outta it and turns it into work....tho i was never paid anytihng during the year one summer i did get paid a decent ammount to basically sit around and download movies of morpheus and watch them...the opportunity securing and managing everytinhg provided invaluable experience even if i did have to come in for 18 hours straight during spring break to rebuild the server after being hacked...
I know getting students involved with the computer syustems at schools is not always possible, but schools, at which a similar setup would be feasible, should take advantage of certain young peoples desires to learn and help out...many motivated individuals know sooo much more than the people hired to take care of the systems, if these students are not tapped for their knowledge and do not become involved in helping with the system then it is much more likely that they would be working against the administration, maybe not as straight up maliciousness but even just playing around with things when the admins dont know would cause the students to get in trouble....

ANYWAYS ive just rambled on about shit and i dunno what i said so ill submit it anyways lol...

-psyiode

[astcell]

Hittin' that Tennessee moonshine again?