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Camera Comfort
A sentimental sprucing up of office décor is easy for working parents who can display a photo of their child at their corporate cubicle. It’s a framed reminder of who mom and dad are working so hard for. But some parents in San Diego County are taking advantage of new technology to zap in a live picture of their preschooler at daycare or school. These Internet viewing systems use cameras installed at the preschool or childcare center and parents sign on at their office computer to catch a view of their child. One Carmel Valley business, GuardianCam, has installed its cameras at numerous preschools and early childhood centers throughout the county. Teachers and daycare workers know the cameras are in the classroom, says Jim DeLapa, GuardianCam president. The system’s purpose is to “ease the separation anxiety of working mothers and fathers.” When North Park mom Teri Brown logs onto her work computer in the morning to see her four-year-old Isaiah, she never logs off. “I keep it on all day,” says Brown, who has explained how the Internet viewing system works to her boss and co-workers. All understand her choice to view her son while she’s away, she says. “It’s just reassuring while you are at work,” says Brown who watches her son at Disciples Christian Preschool from her office in Mira Mesa. “You have that connection still even though you’re so far away from them,” says Brown. It’s an economic reality for many families that both parents have to work and both full-time. DeLapa says for many parents, especially first-time mothers, enrolling their child in an early learning center or preschool is a hard decision. “New moms thought they were giving up the right to check on their children” when they drop them off at childcare, he adds. By using an Internet viewing system, parents can check on their kids and have peace of mind during their busy workday, says DeLapa. Cameras In The Classroom Typically eight cameras that offer a general overview of the room are installed in classrooms. The cameras do not transmit sound and have no zoom capabilities. School administrators control who has access to the system and passwords are only handed out by the school. Once logged on, a parent can see their young one enjoying circle time with their teacher and classmates or diving into a finger-painting project. Parents can also read notices posted by the school, such as reminders about early closings or pizza parties. Seeing a quick bulletin while behind the desk may be the only time a parent has a chance to soak in the news about their child’s school, says DeLapa. “The childcare center has a real opportunity to communicate with parents,” says DeLapa. Parents who are savvy to the ways of the Web typically experience online encounters all the while being interrupted by annoying pop-ups or a sea of endless advertising banners. The service GuardianCam provides has no advertising, says DeLapa. The Internet viewing page shows the school’s name and any news, plus the child’s room access button. The live footage of the child’s classroom has no identifiable markers, making it anonymous should a coworker approach a viewing parent. Offering live classroom coverage is not intended to cast a shadow over the teacher’s duties. Seeing a young son or daughter in their classroom setting is what the Internet viewing system is all about, says DeLapa. “Parents use the cameras to see their children – not the teachers.” Having access to a school setting miles away may be unsettling to some parents and teachers. Michelle Grant, director of Oak Knoll Country Day in Poway, admits her staff was a bit “leery” when cameras were combined with the classroom. Once the cameras were installed and the teachers became accustomed to the service, the cameras almost became invisible, Grant says. Viewing Comfort Oak Knoll Country Day has about 85 students during the traditional school year, Grant says, and both parents have access to the web camera program. She sees the benefits to her school families, especially when one parent is out of town on business. The web camera program is also a tool for her, where she can check on how teachers are doing without leaving her desk and interrupting a teacher’s classroom activity. As the school’s administrator, Grant has ultimate access to the program and says the most popular time for parents to peek in on their children is at lunchtime. In fact, the most popular peek times are as soon as the parent arrives to the office and logs on their computer as well as the lunch hour, says DeLapa. Although both parents have access to the Internet viewing system, DeLapa remarks that mothers tend to be the most frequent users. The average logging on time is about eight minutes.
To use the Web cameras, a school must have high-speed Internet access to ensure
the quality of the live classroom coverage. The individual school has the option
to offer the Internet viewing service for free as part of the regular tuition or
charge an additional fee. His company does offer extra passwords for
grandparents wanting to “visit” their grandkid’s classroom. |
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