Wednesday 22 June 2011

AAAArrrgggggghhhhh!!

Just had a phone call from Peter to tell me that Alex has been suspended for two days.

"What for this time?" I hear you ask.

Thankfully it is nothing involving violence or bullying. He has apparently taken a computer file of his from TAFE to school with him and, by using it at school, managed to compromise the school's whole network! Don't ask me how 'cos I don't understand most of what he spouts about computers these days which I know can be dangerous (hello .. suspension!) but I just can't keep up with it all.

My first reaction was dread upon hearing of the suspension .. what's he done now kind of thing.

Second reaction upon hearing what he'd done was relief. Thank goodness no-one has been injured kind of thing.

Third reaction .. laughter. He's only 15, been studying computers for a term-and-a-half and he has compromised a system managed by a rather large team of very expensive 'professionals'.

I keep having to resist the urge to slap him on the back and tell him good job! (There's a bit of history behind that comment .. knowledge about how the previous school-employed IT people were sacked with no notice and then escorted off the premises to make sure they didn't sabotage anything as revenge for the whole no notice thing. Good Christian attitude huh?)

While I don't agree with him messing with something just to prove he can, I honestly don't believe it was done with malicious intent and am therefore going to go into bat for him about the whole two day suspension thing. The system is still working; no private/confidential information has been accessed and there is no lasting damage so I think it is rather severe.

Plus there's the whole 'let's punish him by giving him more time away from school' thing. I've never really understood that especially with this child. I have explained until I'm blue in the face that it is not a punishment and teaches him absolutely nothing but the school insists that 'justice must be seen to be done'!

AAAAArrrrgggghhhh

2 comments:

Madmother said...

It's like the young english man with Asperger's who took down the pentagon's system. Then contacted them to let them know it was him and to try to get them to tighten security.

I agree - the punishment is unfair.

Belinda Chan Oates said...

I laughed til I cried ! Way to go Alex ! Erm...BAD BOY ALEX ! BAD BAD! :P
On the same day I read this I had one of my EA's share a story of her daughter punching out a fellow student because he was harrassing her. Apparently the boy had be "stalking" her and when she refused to give her mobile phone number to her the boy got on FB and posted that they two of them were a "couple" and had been "sex-ing"?! SO she punched him out ! Broke his nose etc. While the principal appluded her standing up for herself...she STILL had to do two days in school detention...because hitting is a major NO-No. The mother of the child was also at a loss to what to say to her daughter - yes she stood up for herself - but hitting someone is out of the question too!

Good luck with the school. I hope Alex has learnt his lesson and the school has also learn their lesson too !!

Hugs to all of you !