DHS Handbook

DPS provides students and staff access to various electronic resources including a wide range of educational materials through Internet and computer online services. DPS uses content filtering technology in compliance with CIPA on all school computers with Internet access to protect against unacceptable web content. However, no web filtering technology is 100% safe. DPS realizes this fact and takes every effort to monitor online activity.

 

Do not send any message that includes personal information such as: home address, personal phone numbers and/or last name for yourself or any other person. Likewise, the staff is not permitted to post this information to public domains (i.e. class web page or Internet). Images and products of K-12 students may be included on district/ school/ classroom websites without identifying captions or names unless parental permission is denied.

 

Teachers of students in grades K-2 will access appropriate websites for their students. Students in grades 3-5 may not attempt to access any Internet resource without the prior consent of the teacher.

 

Internet passwords are provided for each user’s personal use only and are, therefore, confidential. Never share your password, steal or use another person’s password. If you suspect that someone has discovered your password, you should change it immediately and notify your teacher or administrator who in turn will notify the network administrator or the technology director. As words are easily hacked, when establishing a password one should keep in mind that strong passwords consist of a combination of upper and lowercase letters, numbers and symbols.

 

E-mail is no more private than a postcard. Students and staff need to know that files stored on school computers are not private. Network and Internet access is provided as a tool for educational purposes only. The District has the right to monitor, inspect, copy, review and store at any time and without prior notice any and all usage of the computer network and Internet access including transmitted and received information. All information files are the property of the District and no user shall have any expectation of privacy regarding such files. Federal Law requires that all email sent and received be stored for a period of ‘seven years’.

 

Follow the guidelines of accepted behaviors within the school handbook. Use appropriate language and graphics. Swearing, vulgarities, suggestive, obscene, belligerent, harassing, threatening or abusive language of any kind is not acceptable. Do not use school online access to make, distribute, or redistribute jokes, stories, cyber bullying, obscene material or material which is based on slurs or stereotypes relating to race, gender, ethnicity, nationality, religion, or sexual orientation.

 

Teachers may incorporate: email, blogs, podcasts, video conferencing, online collaborations, PDAs, IMing, texting, Virtual Learning Environments and other forms of direct electronic communications (i.e. cell phones, PDAs, cameras) or Web 2.0 applications for educational purposes. Although teachers monitor student online activity, it is the direct responsibility of the user to comply with this acceptable use policy.

 

Use of blogs, podcasts or other Web 2.0 tools are considered an extension of the classroom. Whether at home or in school, any speech that is considered inappropriate in the classroom is also inappropriate in all uses of blogs, podcasts, or other Web 2.0 tools. Students using blogs, podcasts or other Web 2.0 tools are expected to act safely by keeping ALL personal information out of their posts. Comments made on school related blogs should follow the rules of online etiquette detailed above and will be monitored by school personnel. If inappropriate, they will be deleted. Never link to web sites from a blog without reading the entire article to make sure it is appropriate for a school setting.

 

Plagiarism is the act of using someone else's words or ideas as your own. Students are required to give proper credit to all Internet sources used in academic assignments, whether quoted or summarized. This includes all forms of media on the Internet, such as graphics, movies, music, and text. Plagiarism of Internet resources will be treated in the same manner as any other incidences of plagiarism, as stated in the school handbook. In addition, all students and faculty must adhere to the copyright laws of the Unites States (P.L. 94-553) and the Congressional Guidelines that delineate it regarding software, authorship, and copying information. All students and faculty should also adhere to the Creative Commons agreements to share, remix, and reuse media.

 

The use of anonymous proxies to get around content filtering is strictly prohibited and is a direct violation of this agreement.

 

Use of the network for any illegal activities is prohibited. Illegal activities include, but are not limited to: (a) tampering with computer hardware or software, (b) software piracy (c) unauthorized entry into computers and files (hacking), (d) knowledgeable vandalism or destruction of equipment, (e) deletion of computer files belonging to someone other than oneself, (f) uploading or creating of computer viruses, (g) distribution of obscene or pornographic materials, and (h) sexting. Such activity is considered a crime under state and federal law. Users must be aware that any illegal action carried out over the Internet will be reported to law enforcement officials for possible prosecution. Please be advised, it is a federal offense (felony) to break into any security system. Financial and legal consequences of such actions are the responsibility of the user (staff, volunteer, and student) and student’s parent or guardian.