Password Pain: safety vs convenience

"Mrs Saunders, I can't remember my password!"

Sigh. If there ever was a quicker way to halt the amazing potential of educational apps, websites or programs, asking young students to keep track of multiple passwords for multiple means has to be the ultimate downer. It's not the students fault either, nor teachers, nor the technology. Often the teachers are asked to assign one, or the kids have to or they are randomly generated. Keeping track of various log ins, usernames and passwords can mean the difference between participating in a learning activity or simply letting it float away.

And it isn't just the kids! We are all expected to navigate multiple accounts on multiple devices and if we're lucky enough to use a program that is enabled on all devices (Hallelujah!) then thankfully once logged in we may be able to forego the whole process altogether.

To get around any forgetful pitfalls, I asked my class to keep a note on their ipads that collated all their log ins and information for the various sites and apps we use. Which is a great temporary fix until one day an ipad's security is compromised and someone gets access to their information. I looked at applications that assist with keeping them safe but most of them aren't super easy for kids to use or cost money in order to be effective. Perhaps the solution is in the works, someone may be already looking into creatively negotiating the issue - (after all, aren't we at a fingerprint technology level yet?).

In the meantime, I keep a file on my desk with all my assessment data that includes all the kids usernames and passwords in hard copy, easy-to-access format for those dreaded emergencies, "Mrs Saunders, what's my password again?"

JS