NEWTON, Mass. -- Hidden cameras discovered by student journalists at a Newton high school have parents and teachers asking questions this week.

While the cameras weren't operational they have stirred debate over whether it is appropriate or legal to have them installed in the school.

The newly-installed surveillance cameras were installed in Newton South High School halls about four months ago without anyone noticing them.

Now, the teachers union and school committee members said they want to know why they weren't told that the $12,000 cameras were going to be installed.

Primarily located outside locker rooms and bathrooms, the cameras are hidden inside tinted domes or have been made to look like smoke alarms. They have not yet been activated.

The school superintendent, Jeffrey M. Young, told the Boston Globe that the cameras were installed to catch thieves, but the head of the school committee said the governing panel had not been informed of the installation.

Other schools, such as Dorchester High School and the high schools in Framingham and Natick, do use security cameras, usually at their entrances, to identify people coming and going from the building.