Intranet Policy
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Contents |
Introduction
Information and Communications Technology is of increasing importance in the world today and one important part is the Mount Tamar School Intranet.
Mount Tamar School has a network of computers which access the Intranet and the policy below outlines the safeguards which must be adheared to.
Staff and Pupils
When using the Intranet, all users must comply with all copyright, libel, fraud, discrimination and obscenity laws, and all school staff (both teachers and support staff) are expected to communicate in a professional manner consistent with the rules of behaviour governing employees in the education sector.
Pupils are responsible for their good behaviour on the school networks, just as they are on and off school premises. While the use of information and communication technologies is a required aspect of the curriculum, access to the Intranet remains a privilege and not a right. It is given to pupils who act in a considerate and responsible manner, and will be withdrawn if they fail to maintain acceptable standards of use.
Staff should ensure that pupils know and understand that no Intranet user is permitted to:
- retrieve, send, copy or display offensive messages or pictures;
- use obscene or racist language;
- harass, insult or attack others;
- damage computers, computer systems or computer networks;
- violate copyright laws;
- use another users password;
- trespass in another users folders, work or files;
- intentionally waste resources (such as on-line time and consumables);
- use the network for unapproved commercial purposes.
Location and Supervision
It is an absolute requirement that the school ensures that access to the Intranet provided to staff and pupils in Mount Tamar School is filtered. All users should be aware that the school can and does track and record the places visited, the searches made on the Intranet and email sent and received by individual users.
While using the Intranet at Mount Tamar School, pupils should, where possible, be supervised. However, when appropriate, pupils may pursue work independent of staff supervision if they have been granted permission. In all cases, pupils should be reminded of their responsibility to use these resources in line with the school policy on acceptable use.
Schools should ensure that all pupils understand how they are to use the Intranet appropriately and why the rules exist.
Network administrators may review files and communications to maintain system integrity and ensure that users are using the system responsibly. While normal privacy is respected and protected by password controls, as with the Intranet itself, users must not expect files stored on the Mount Tamar School servers to be absolutely private.
Examples of Acceptable and Unacceptable Use
- On-line activities which are encouraged include, for example:
- the use of email and computer conferencing for communication between colleagues, between pupil(s) and teacher(s), between pupil(s) and pupil(s), between schools and industry;
- use of the Intranet to investigate and research school subjects, cross-curricular themes and topics related to social and personal development;
- the development of pupils competence in ICT skills and their general research skills.
- On-line activities which are not permitted include, for example:
- searching, viewing and/or retrieving materials that are not related to the aims of the curriculum or future careers;
- copying, saving and/or redistributing copyright protected material, without approval;
- subscribing to any services or ordering any goods or services, unless specifically approved by the school;
- playing computer games or using other interactive sites, unless specifically assigned by the teacher;
- using the network in such a way that use of the network by other users is disrupted (for example: downloading large files during peak usage times; sending mass email messages);
- publishing, sharing or distributing any personal information about a user (such as: home address; email address; phone number, etc.);
- any activity that violates a school rule.
Advice for Parents
While in school, teachers will guide pupils toward appropriate materials on the Intranet, outside school, parents or guardians bear the same responsibility for such guidance as they would normally exercise with information sources such as television, telephones, movies, radio and other media.
- Such guidance and advice should include the following:
- parents should discuss with their children the rules for using the Intranet and decide together when, how long, and what comprises appropriate use;
- parents should get to know the Mount Tamar School VLE (MTSOC), and talk to them about what they are learning;
- parents should ensure that they give their agreement before their children give outpersonal identifying information in any electronic communication on the Intranet, such as a picture, an address, a phone number, the school name, or financial information such as credit card or bank details. In this way they can protect their children (and themselves) from unwanted or unacceptable overtures from strangers, from unplanned expenditure and from fraud;
- parents should encourage their children not to respond to any unwelcome, unpleasant or abusive messages, and to tell them if they receive any such messages or images. If the message comes from an Internet service connection provided by the school or SWGfL they should immediately inform the school.
