Source: Digital Access Key Image; Morgue File; http://mrg.bz/xJqkIW; Meeting Image; Morgue File; http://mrg.bz/8BMjLO; District 196 AUP Images; PDF; http://bit.ly/1sj9tnM
Today, we're going to be looking at the process of investigating your specific district's policies on technology. And for today's quote, I've chosen one by Carol Bellamy, which states "in serving the best interests of children, we serve the best interests of all humanity." So by the end of today's lesson, you should be able to explain the CIPA requirements for schools and for libraries.
You should be able to discuss the best practices for schools when it comes to their policies regarding internet usage. And you should be able to investigate-- we're going to take a look at a sample district policy-- and consider the impacts of that policy. Let's look at what the various Children's Internet Prevention Act requirements are.
First and foremost, any school or library must have an internet safety policy, and this policy must involve the following elements. It needs to make sure that it blocks or filters access to obscene or harmful images. This you'll be able to see when you're in a school or library and you type in a certain website, potentially sometimes a harmless website, but it gets popped up as blocked. This means that some element of that website has been deemed harmful or obscene to children, and, thus, has been blocked by this act.
Schools must hold public meetings to make sure that they address these policies. They also have to monitor various students' online behaviors and make sure that teachers are teaching students about appropriate online behaviors. Next, let's take a look at CIPA in practice, right, some of the best practice suggestions when looking at a school's acceptable use policy.
So first of all, what you're going to want to do is review your district's policy to see if it includes some of these suggested elements. First, you're going to want to see that there is a statement that the policy complies with a state or federal law, sort of adding a little more gravity to the policy. You're going to want to see that it lists the roles and responsibilities of stakeholders when using that technology on campus. When we say stakeholders here, what we mean are employees, students, parents or guardians, anyone who is actually accessing that technology and that it lists those responsibilities for each of those individual users.
You want to see if it includes an explanation of the rights and responsibilities of the users, and it's really important to note that this is both in using these devices on campus and off campus. You want to see if it includes a disclaimer limiting the school district's liability. This is the district saying that they're not responsible should anything be downloaded on one of its devices that could be considered offensive.
You want to see if it includes a description of the instructional philosophies and strategies. What this is looking at is is there any information on the way in which technology is going to be used in class? How is it going to be used? Why is it going to be used that way, basically indicating why the district sees that technology as a benefit?
You'll want to see if there's a description of the district's safety measures. We know that that's a requirement of CIPA. So is the district showing you how they are protecting these devices and the students using the devices, and in what way? You're going to want to see if there's a description of the district's data security measures? What security precautions are they taking to protect any data put out through a school's technology or through their internet?
You're going to want to see if it includes any assurances of policy enforcement. Basically, what this means is is the school or the district saying we promise to or we will punish any of those who are found to be not in following the district's acceptable use policy? And if so, what's the procedure to address those violations. Sometimes that might even include legal action.
You're going to want to see if there is a description of ongoing awareness of training opportunities. So does this mean that for parents, for students, for teachers are there opportunities to learn about the acceptable use policy? Is there information on how it's going to change and what parents, and students, each of those stakeholders can do to help keep up with those changes?
Finally, you're going to want to see if there is a description of the procedures for evaluating and revising the policy. How is the district going to go about making any adjustments, and what is that going to look like? So now let's go ahead and take a look at a sample AUP. You'll notice at the bottom that this comes from District 196's acceptable use policy for students.
So you'll notice at the very top it has the title Acceptable Use Policy of Information Technology with a subcapped of Students. This is directly applicable to students. First, you're going to see that it's broken down into permission to use networks and then the guidelines for network and computer use.
Now these guidelines go on for a while. So you'll see that on future slides. So you'll notice there up at the top that when we look at the permission to use, it shows that those resources and technology internet are approved at all grade levels. But before they are allowed to use it, a parent or guardian has to complete a permission form. This is something that's fairly common.
There are a number of parents who don't want their students accessing internet technology. Sometimes this means they don't want them to have access at school, which is a pretty difficult situation to navigate. And, usually, if that comes up, I would recommend seeking out a principal or guidance counselor to talk with the parent so that student isn't missing out on a learning opportunity.
But more often than not, parents will not want their students information to be published online. And sometimes this can be a pretty serious reason. Oftentimes, there are families who are trying to keep that student maybe away from another parent, or there are legal implications involved with that student's identity and information being online.
Next, let's look into the network and computer use guidelines. First, they point out that the use of the internet at workstations is a privilege that can be revoked at any time. So that's really looking in at that enforcement of the policy. Then it shows that access to the internet, and it defines that it's going to be for educational purposes only. This is really where they reserve the right to kick a student off of a computer for any information or access that isn't for educational purposes, so a student is listening to music, or watching YouTube videos, or playing games that aren't designed for class. And it's enforcing that any information that's downloaded from the internet needs to be classroom related.
A little further down that network policy, you'll see that they're showing the standard consequences to misbehavior. They're also showing that any misuse or illegal activities will result not only in canceling those network privileges but if there's a violation with the law that law enforcement will be contacted. Again, this is showing you sort of that assurance of how it's being enforced and what legal action will be taken.
Then we look at those two elements where if students come across any information that's obscene that they need to make sure that they immediately report it. In the acceptable use policy, it requires that those who feel like they're victims need to immediately report that information. And that any district owned network or device needs to comply with the policies and laws, basically meaning that students and teachers, and you'll see this in the one for teachers and the one for parents, don't have an expectation of privacy in terms of district-owned networks, meaning that at any time someone could look and see one of the past web sites that this person has been on, what's the information that they've saved to that computer or to their files. So there really isn't an expectation of privacy. And it states that students can bring their own devices but that those devices need to be within the district's acceptable use policy.
Finally, it ends with information focusing on downloading the files, making sure that it fits within the guidelines that the district has set up, and also that it's being approved by any virus scanning software before it's launched or opened. The final area is the network internet and email etiquette, focusing in on being polite, using appropriate language, and seeking guidance. This really focuses in on that best practice idea of ensuring that we are helping to focus on what we're doing with that technology and how it's going to be helping students. Finally, you'll notice at the bottom it references the Children's Internet Prevention Act and kind of adds that little bit of extra to why these are being put into place.
Now that we're done with the lesson, you should be able to explain the Children's Internet Protection Act requirements for both schools and libraries. You should be able to discuss some of the best practices suggested for schools and for district acceptable use policies and investigate and really break apart a sample district policy to consider what the impacts of that policy are. Now I would like to take just a moment for reflection.
Now that you have learned out your district policies, what would be the first step that you might take to begin implementing your district's technology policy into your classroom? What are some of the challenges that you foresee as you start implementing these policies? As you reflect on how this new information can be applied, you might want to explore the additional resources section that accompanies this video presentation. This is where you'll find links to resources chosen to help you deepen your learning and explore ways to apply your newly acquired skill set. That's all we have for right now. I hope you have a wonderful rest of your day.
(00:00-00:22) Intro
(00:23-00:48) Objectives
(00:49-01:49) CIPA Requirements
(01:50-04:57) Best Practices
(04:58-09:31) Investigating a Sample AUP
(09:32-09:55) Review
(09:56-10:39) Reflection
Acceptable Use Policy Considerations for Districts
This site provides an overview of acceptable use requirements and guidelines for districts from the Kentucky Department of Education. This site supports district decision making in developing an acceptable use policy that is in compliance with federal laws and regulations.
http://education.ky.gov/districts/tech/Pages/Acceptable-Use-Districts.aspx
K12 Blue Print
This is a really comprehensive resource that provides examples and templates for district technology plans and acceptable use policies. There is a toolkit and template available for districts as they plan the following: acceptable use; technology plan; Flipped Classroom Policy; Policy Presentations for School Boards; Policy Presentations for Administrators; Policy Presentation for Teachers; and Policy Presentation for Parents. If you are increasing technology use in your district, this toolkit walks you through the process and provides you useful templates for your planning.
http://www.k12blueprint.com/policy