• 09 SEP 11
    • 0

    Ontario School removes Wi-Fi over safety concerns

    From Magda Havas:

    For distribution:

    A private school in Collingwood, Ontario has removed Wi-Fi and has installed wired technology. This is excellent news. I wish other schools would follow their lead. I understand that the teachers in the school are grateful as are the parents that their children are NOT going to be exposed to microwave radiation, a possible carcinogen.

    I find it fascinating that the public school system is promoting Wi-Fi, refuses to listen to parents, silences teachers, ignores the research, and can’t get Wi-Fi installed fast enough, even though many of these schools already have a wired system, so the Wi-Fi is redundant. It seems that they were allotted money for this (money that can’t be used for anything else) and every schools is following like sheep to the slaughter.

    Several private schools, in contrast, are either not installing Wi-Fi or are removing it because of health concerns. I certainly know which school I would want my children to attend. It is a no brainer. I expect these private schools are also teaching their students to think independently, to question authority, to believe in their own convictions and not be lead down the garden path. If public schools are teaching independent thinking, they are certainly not walking their talk.

    Hear the hour-long interview and phone-in at this link:

    http://pamkilleen.com/app/download/4823862104/Andy+Oudman+Pam+Killeen+WiFi+Magda+Havas.mp3

    *** Also see news report on CTV ***

    Ontario school cuts Wi-Fi over safety concerns

    http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/SciTech/20110908/ontario-school-cuts-wi-fi-health-concern-110908/ctvtoronto.ca

    Date: Thursday Sep. 8, 2011 12:49 PM ET
    A private school in Ontario has cut its wireless Internet network over concerns that the technology causes health issues in students.
    Pretty River Academy in Collingwood, Ont., a private school with 150 students attending kindergarten to Grade 12, is the first Ontario school to remove Wi-Fi from campus.

    The school’s old Wi-Fi system was taken out over the summer and replaced with Ethernet connections ahead of the first day of the school year.
    In May the World Health Organization said radio frequency radiation from WiFi and cell phones posed a similar health threat to DDT, lead and car exhaust.
    Principal Roberta Murray-Hirst says the new hard-wired Internet system is actually faster than their previous system and gives teachers control over when students can go online.

    Murray-Hirst said they did not receive any complaints from students or parents about health concerns but decided to take the precaution anyway.
    “We like to be proactive and obviously safety is always a concern,” she said.

    The debate over wireless Internet in Ontario schools grew heated last summer when a group of elementary school teachers attempted to have the technology banned from classrooms in the Niagara region.

    The Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario voted to keep wireless Internet but a group called the Safe Schools Committee has continued to push for a ban.
    They claim exposure to wireless Internet causes headaches, insomnia and rashes in students “” afflictions that seem to subside on weekends and vacations, only to return when the kids go back to school.

    Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health said wireless Internet posed no threat to children at schools.

    Dr Magda Havas
    drmagdahavas@gmail.com

    Leave a reply →