GoGuardian is Ruining My Life

 

(More like NoGuardian...)

Yes, the title is hyperbole, but this is a blog, so I'm going to use hyperbole all I want.

So, junior year began, and I'm already stressed beyond belief, I'm not even gonna sugarcoat it. I mean, it's not like there is no hope- some of the classes are cool and there's some clubs I'm considering, but just, as a whole...it's so much at once, and I need to organize it all.

There's a good chance I might make a future post discussing how I've been trying to do that, but for now, I just want to make a quick rant post about this annoying software (some suspect even spyware) that has made using my Chromebook harder than it needs to be: GoGuardian.

Basically, GoGuardian is a software that is designed to stop students from using inappropriate websites or getting distracted on their school devices. Simple in concept, and one that is needed for student safety. However, I feel there's a stunning lack of control between what is "inappropriate" and actually "educational". Here's some of my experiences with websites GoGuardian has blocked (and why some are preposterous):

First of all, most game or "fun" websites are no longer available. Stuff like Scratch, Pixilart, and the ionic CoolMathGames are gone. And I'm not saying students should be playing these in class, but I feel kinda bad they get banned entirely. What if class ends early or a student wants to play outside of class?

That's another thing to bring up- Go Guardian works REGARDLESS if your using your Chromebook in school or at home. Which is a problem because at home, I theoretically SHOULD be able to use the websites, NO teacher is there to monitor to me! (Again, not saying I should, that's more of a self-control discussion, but still, GoGuardian limits how much students can use Chromebooks in and OUT of school.)

And this brings up my 3rd point, which is probably the one I'm most concerned with- the fact GoGuardian blocks websites I need to use for school, like educational websites. So far, I've seen BrainPOP, Mathisfun, and CoolMath are no longer available. (When I say "CoolMath", I mean the original website that taught algebra before the games came out.) These websites helped me with topic review, especially in math, but now I can't use them...even though BrainPOP is attached to CLEVER!

It also blocked websites teachers wanted me to go to. For example, in Forensics, I couldn't go on the website for our first assignment, where I would find the answer to my puzzle. Another example is in Spanish, there's this website they wanted me to use called Conjugemos, to study my verbs, and I couldn't use it outside of class. And in Journalism, for the first few weeks, Basecamp was blocked! The website my teacher and classmates have to use in order to work on our projects! You can't make this up!

This brings me to one last website GoGuardian has blocked, and the one that caught my attention the most-...YouTube. Yep, all those easy-to-access educational videos I need to watch? Can't. Calming studying music I can use after school? Can't. Even if I'm outside of school, just want to chill on my Chromebook after finishing my work? Can't. *sigh* YT man...I'll miss using it on my Chromebook.

I will say, at least most of these websites can be unblocked by the teacher when your in class. And as I implied, Basecamp would be unblocked completely by the technicians, so thankfully our projects are still in action!...Unthankfully, they still won't allow us to email students on our student accounts, so...*sigh* there will be some trials and tribulations this first month of school.

And hey, we need to consider GoGuardian only affects our CHROMEBOOKS. My phone is still in my pocket, and I can still use it...during lunch and after school. I should add, the new phone policy says if we're caught with our phone at any point during a class, it's taken away for the rest of the day. Not much I can argue about that since I have been trying to use my phone less regardless.

Still thoguh, GoGuardian is...something else, and as I put it earlier, it's making Chromebooks a bit harder to use now. But at least it is keeping students on tract and not distracted!...most of the time. I mean, only if the teacher is actually monitoring them...

So yeah, that's my little rant about GoGuardian, and if you have to deal with GoGuardian as well, tell me how you feel about it. This post was obviously hyperbole at times, but GoGuardian still can be a pet peeve, and I don't really know how effective it is. But I'll probably get used to it anyway. My school has introduced a lot of strange policies, like the late policy, but I have been getting used to them. 

That's all. See you on my next post!

- ninesevenpotatoes, 2026.