California high school requiring students to scan QR codes to leave class

ORANGE COUNTY, Calif. ( KTLA ) — Hall passes seem to be a thing of the past for one California high school.

At Edison High School in Huntington Beach, students must download an app and scan a QR code when they leave the classroom for any reason — such as going to the bathroom, visiting the nurse’s office, the library, or the school wellness center. This system tracks how long they’ve been gone, and students must scan in again when they return.

Principal Daniel Morris told the Orange County Register that the policy has been implemented for student safety. He said the QR code system is not “strict” but provides guidelines that students are asked to follow.

Not all teachers are requesting students to abide by the instructions, Morris added.

“We understand kids’ situations, and in 99% of those cases, we’re aware of the students that need extra visits,” he told the O.C. Register. Morris added that tracking how often a student leaves the classroom helps administrators determine if a conversation with the student is needed or if they might benefit from additional support.

The new system has caused quite a stir among some students, who started a petition to get the school to remove the QR codes. Some told Nexstar’s KTLA that the bathrooms periodically close, and the time restraints for being out of class aren’t realistic.

“Sometimes the bathrooms are closed, and sometimes we don’t have enough time for the seven-minute limit that we get,” student Jacob Green told KTLA’s Orange County Bureau Chief Chip Yost. “If we don’t end up [returning] within the seven minutes, we get marked as truant, absent or being late to the class…it’s definitely unfair when you’re trying to use the restroom.”

Another student, Tony Garcia, claimed that he got in trouble for being gone “a minute” longer than the system allows.

“I’ve gone like a minute over and the teacher would nag me and wouldn’t let me use the bathroom in the next class,” he said. “It’s kind of annoying.”

KTLA has reached out to Edison High School and the Huntington Beach Union High School District for comment but has yet to hear back.

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