SOUTHCITY CHRISTIAN SCHOOL INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY (ICT) RESPONSIBLE USE AGREEMENT FOR STUDENTs
GENERAL:
The internet is a great resource for any school, with large amounts of information available at any given time. Students benefit enormously from the ability to access a wide variety of educational material and independently research topics related to their learning.
Southcity Christian School believes that the benefits to students from access to the internet, far outweigh the disadvantages. However the responsibility for setting and conveying the expectations for acceptable use of these resources, is one that the school shares with parents and caregivers.
The school is currently covered by a filter service provided by the Ministry of Education through our Internet Service Provider.
All students are taught digital citizenship, as part of the health curriculum, and how to leave a healthy digital footprint. Younger students may be restricted to sites which have been reviewed and selected for content, however, from around Year 4, students are taught how to use searching techniques to locate specific information for themselves. They are also taught how to view web sites and information with a critical eye. Each student is setup with a ‘School Google Account’ (this is school property) which is used to login to chrome. Teachers can access the account at any time and are able to monitor and pause students use. At times, information from You Tube, video clips and photographs are downloaded, by the teacher from the internet and shown to the whole class on the Interactive Whiteboard.
Junior classes (Years 1 to 3) will have access to class iPads which are used as additional support within their group learning. They only have access to the applications available and have no access to the internet.
Unfortunately, no system is perfect, and nothing is fool proof. Students are taught what to do if something objectionable appears on the screen and the teacher will then take action.
The school has the ability to track the sites that have been accessed by students, and they are checked on a regular basis, to ensure that our expectations are being met. If it is found that students are misusing the privilege of using the internet, accessing inappropriate sites, and possibly even using it to bully other students, then serious consequences will follow.
Your responsibility as a parent towards Internet safety at school:
- I will read this Responsible Use Agreement.
- I will discuss the information with my child and explain why it is important.
- I will support the school's internet safety programme by encouraging my child to follow the internet safety rules/expectations.
- I will encourage my child to seek assistance from their teacher if they are unsure about any use of the computer or the internet.
- I will contact the class teacher or the principal to discuss any questions I might have about internet safety and/or this agreement.
(ICT means any digital technology - computers, mobile phones, cameras etc - used by the school to assist students with their learning.)
GENERAL:
Any mobile phones brought to school by students, must be handed to the class teacher or school office for safekeeping during the school day. Smart watches with phone/internet capabilities must also be handed in each day. If a smart device is needed for health reasons, please talk to the principal. (Any child needing to contact home can do so via the office.)
ICT at school is used to help my learning.
Expectations / rules are in place to help me stay safe when using ICT.
THINGS I MUST DO:
- Only use the computer with the teacher’s permission.
- Only use the computer if the teacher is in the room.
- Start and shut down the computers correctly.
- Be considerate and share the equipment with others in the class.
- Treat all the equipment with respect and care, and tell my teacher if anything is wrong or broken.
- Only access websites that apply to information I need, or those located on the school’s website.
- Only use my School Google Account for school work.
- Keep passwords and information about yourself and other people private and offline.
- Tell my teacher if I find anything that upsets me, is mean or rude, or things I know are not right.
THINGS I MUST NOT DO:
- Never open someone else’s files or folders.
- Never download anything without permission.
- Never change the settings on the computer.
- Never use chat rooms or discussion boards, like Facebook or Twitter.
- Never tell anyone on the internet anything about myself or others – especially not my name or address.
- Never use disks or memory cards or USB sticks from home, on the school computer.
- Never even try to look up something on the internet which I know is not for children.
- Never even try to visit any website or create any file that is inappropriate for school.
- Never try to install or uninstall any programs on any school computer.
- Never print anything that is not school or homework related.
- Never waste resources.
Parental Consent to Computer and Internet Use:
- I have read and discussed the Responsible Use Agreement with my child and I understand that internet access at Southcity Christian School is designed for educational purposes.
- I recognise that although the school has monitoring procedures in place to restrict access to inappropriate materials; this may not always be fool proof.
- I understand that while the school will do its best to restrict students’ access to any internet material that is offensive, dangerous, illegal or inappropriate for school, it is the responsibility of my child to have no involvement with such material.
- I understand that my child will be disciplined if they deliberately access inappropriate/objectionable content.
- I accept that theft or damage to equipment could result in my receipt of a bill to cover replacement parts and/or repairs.
- I agree to pay for replacement parts and/or repairs on receipt of a bill.
Please note: No student will be allowed access to the school computers and/or the internet, until parent have given permission.