ACCEPTABLE USE POLICIES:

IN THE CLASSROOM & BEYOND

Victoria Scheffer
2/28/16
EDTC 630
Professor Donovan

Source: http://ocs.archchicago.org
 WHAT IS AN ACCEPTABLE USE
POLICY OR AUP?
An Acceptable Use Policy, known as an AUP, is a legal document that seeks to
protect an institution, its users therein, and their equipment from online
dangers and liability

AUPs are extensively used, not only at the corporate level, (Starbucks for
instance) but also in the realm of education

Source: marketingand.com Source: http://riitariitahe.wordpress.com

 PURPOSE OF AN AUP

Upon the disclosure and acceptance of such a policy, administrators and users
enter upon a mutual agreement that establishes standards of protection,
centered around an agreed-upon mode and manner of conduct when using
technology hardware, software, and networks

Regardless of the distinction of an AUP, be it corporate or educational, they

share 2 basic intentions: safety & limited liability

Source: thejournal.com
 WHY DO WE NEED AN AUP AS A
SCHOOL?
Even as a small independent school, we are in the unique position of providing
both students and staff with consistent protection and access

Perhaps The Consortium for School Networking best explains why schools not
only should, but must adopt their own AUP:

to ensure that students are protected from pernicious materials on the Internetto
enable student access to the extensive resources on the Internet for learning and
teaching (COSN, 2011, p.2)

Source: Swansea-edunet.gov.uk
 OUR SCHOOL POLICY
Given the fact that we are a small independent school, our AUP for both
students and teachers has been adopted from the public school district in
which we reside (Anne Arundel County Public Schools)

Both student and employee AUPs are easily accessible in pdf form from the
county directly, at the following links:
Employee Handbook - http://www.aacps.org/humanresources/handbook.pdf
Student Handbook - http://www.aacps.org/html/studt/studenthandbook.pdf

Source: alephbet.org Source: aacps.org

EMPLOYEE AUP: OVERVIEW

(AACPS, 2015, P.12)

EMPLOYEE ACCEPTABLE USES:
INDIVIDUAL & CLASSROOM

(AACPS, 2015, p. 14) (AACPS, 2015, p. 18)

 TEACHER DONTS:
UNACCEPTABLE USES
Violating the law (local, Federal, copyright, etc.)
Improper usage of email
Transmission of viruses, Trojans, and worms
Disabling safety features
Use of a false identity
Revealing personal info of others
Misrepresentation of school
Loading unapproved software Source: nosweatpublicspeaking.com

Failing to report inappropriate usage

Personal usage of email, hardware, and software (AACPS, 2015, pp. 14-17)
STUDENT AUP: OVERVIEW

(AACPS, 2015, p.20)

STUDENT: ACCEPTABLE USES

(AACPS, 2015, p.20)

 STUDENT DONTS:
UNACCEPTABLE USES
Disabling safety features
Non-school activities
Pirating software, music, etc.
Install programs
Plagiarism
Cyber Bullying
Damage hardware or software
Violating the law

(AACPS, 2015, p.20)

 CONSEQUENCES FOR
EMPLOYEES & STUDENTS
Consequences are varied in accordance with the severity of the infraction.
AACPS consequences are outlined in a level of detail that does not match the
unique disciplinary standards outlined in our schools behavior plan or handbook
for either employees or students

Future discussion and collaboration as a staff and school community will be

required to outline consequences appropriate for our school and the technology
therein
 HOW CAN WE COMMUNICATE
ALL OF THIS INFORMATION?

Staff Students Parents

Summer in-service days Technology instruction Back-to-School-Night
Professional Development (weekly in-class) Presentation
Days Whole school presentation Technology Night
Technology Training Parental involvement Presentation
meetings AUP contracts AUP Contracts
Employee Handbooks Student Handbooks Parent Handbooks
 IMPLEMENTATION IN THE
CLASSROOM
The best way to ensure student understanding, acceptance, and usage of AUP
rules and regulations, is through continual education and modeling

When guiding usage of various hardware and software components, students

(especially at the elementary level) need to be provided with multiple tutorials
and modeled learning opportunities

Classroom Implementation Ideas (K-5)

Class read-alouds
Whole-class modeling
Demonstration of Dos
Discussion Donts
Practice Time in the computer lab, with devices, various software, etc.
Practice, practice, practice
Constant monitoring & vigilance
 DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP
Digital Citizenship is quickly becoming an important concept to impart even to
the youngest 21st century learners. With the rise of Web 2.0 tools, blogging,
messaging, email, and many other forms of expression online, knowing how to
conduct ones self on the internet becomes all the more imperative

At its most basic, Digital Citizenship concepts relate to users taking actions
online that promote safety, courtesy, and a global sense of propriety

Ways to promote such ideas: - review different online communication tools

- Discuss plagiarism and its types
- instill such values in the classroom in order to
prevent students from ever considering writing,
Source: therecord-online.com

abusive messages on discussion boards (Sharples, Graber, Harrison, & Logan,

2009, p.74).
 ADOPTION & IMPLEMENTATION
BY TEACHERS
Just as with students, teachers will best be able to emulate the ideals found
within our schools AUP by being made aware of the professional expectations
and limitations in the document

Aside from regular training regarding the many aspects of the AUP document,
teachers should always consider the following:
- Am I being professional online?
- Are all of my actions legal?
- Am I protecting the safety & privacy of myself and my students?
- Do I differentiate between personal & professional actions?

Source: school.discoveryeducation.com
 REFERENCE LIST

AACPS. (2015). Employee handbook: Responsible use of computer and electronic

communications tools and system. Retrieved from
http://www.aacps.org/humanresources/handbook.pdf

AACPS. (2015). Student handbook: Technology resource use by students.

Retrieved from http://www.aacps.org/html/studt/studenthandbook.pdf

Consortium for School, N. (2011). Acceptable use policies in a web 2.0 & mobile
era: A guide for school districts. Consortium for School Networking.
Retrieved from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED517922.pdf

Sharples, M. M., Graber, R. R., Harrison, C. C., & Logan, K. K. (2009). E-safety and
web 2.0 for children aged 1116. Journal Of Computer Assisted Learning,
25(1), 70-84. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2729.2008.00304.x