Margate City School District

Margate City School District

Acceptable Use Policy of Computers, the Internet and Electronic Mail

The Margate City Board of Education, administration, and faculty fully endorse the use of electronic resources as an educational tool. Access to information, research sources, people, and computers throughout the world is available via the Internet to students and will enable students to explore thousands of libraries, museums, and databases. The school has procedures in place to restrict access to questionable material and limit inappropriate use, however, control of all online activities is impossible. Therefore, all users who access the Internet through Margate School District are required to adhere to strict ethical and legal guidelines. All connections to the Internet by district students or employees are subject to the District Acceptable Use Policy. These connections to the Internet are to be used in a responsible, efficient, ethical and legal manner, and as such, must be in support of education and research consistent with the educational objectives of the Margate City Board of Education. If Margate School District users violate any of these provisions, their access via the school will be terminated, and future access may be denied. In addition, a student may be suspended from school.

Students, employees, and community members are subject to the District Acceptable Use Policy and are responsible for appropriate behavior on the school's computer network just as they are in a classroom or on a school playground. General school rules for behavior and communications apply. The use of the networks is a privilege, not a right, and may be revoked if abused. Students are advised never to access, keep, or send anything that they would not want their parents or teachers to see.

Individual network users must understand that access to the Margate City network exists to support the district’s responsibilities and mission. The specific conditions and services that are offered will change from time to time. In addition, the Margate City School District makes no guarantees with respect to its network services, and it specifically assumes no responsibility for:

A. The content of any advice or information received from a source outside the district, or any costs or charges incurred as a result of seeing or accepting such advice;

B. Any costs, liabilities or damages caused by the way an individual chooses to use his/her network access;

C. Any consequences of service interruptions or changes, even if these disruptions arise from circumstances under the control of the district.

Families should be aware that some material accessible via the Internet may contain items which are objectionable to some people. We believe that the advantages of using the Internet far exceed the disadvantages. But ultimately, parents and guardians of minors are responsible for setting the standards that their children should follow when using information resources. Therefore, we support and respect each family's right to decide whether or not to grant permission for their child to use the Internet while in school. The student and his/her parent(s) or guardian should discuss these rights and responsibilities together. Users should also understand that privacy cannot be guaranteed in a network environment.

Acceptable Use of the Internet

I understand that access to the Internet from school property must be in support of education and research, and I agree to the following:

I will not use listservs or newsgroups. I will not download games, music, graphics, video, or software.

I will refrain from accessing any areas of cyberspace that would be offensive to community standards because of pornographic content or illicit/illegal content. I will use the Internet only for specific research under the supervision of a responsible adult.

Accordingly, I am responsible for monitoring and appropriately rejecting materials, links, dialogue, and information accessed/received by me.

I accept responsibility for keeping copyrighted software from entering the school via the Internet. Therefore, I must not download text materials that are copyrighted.

Plagiarism is unacceptable. Therefore, I accept responsibility for using downloaded text in an appropriate manner. Violation of copyright laws will not be tolerated. I will not post, distribute, or use without permission material that was created by someone else. Students are reminded that plagiarism is a reason for disciplinary action in Margate City Public Schools.

I will be courteous and use appropriate language. Therefore, I will refrain from swearing,

or using any forms of obscene, harassing, or abusive language. If I am a victim of such harassment, I will report the abuse immediately to the system administrator, a teacher, or a counselor.

UNACCEPTABLE USE OF THE INTERNET

I will not reveal personal information including names, addresses

or telephone numbers of myself or others.

I will not lend my password to others. I will not use another person's

password.

Students will not use electronic mail.

I will not wastefully use finite resources such as paper, disc space, etc.

I will not post anonymous messages.

I will not vandalize the data of another user. I will not damage the computers or network in any way. I will not delete or change another person’s folder or purposely damage another person’s files.

I will not violate any State or Federal Laws (i.e. copyright laws)

I will not make personal attacks on other people, organizations, religions or

ethnicities.

I will not send defamatory information about a person, group or organization which might injure the reputation of that person, group, or organization.

I will not use the Internet for financial gain, commercial activity, or any illegal activity.

I will not use the Internet for political or religious lobbying.

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Security

If I suspect a security problem related to my school's accounts or on the Internet, I will notify a system administrator. I will not demonstrate the problem to others.

Any user legitimately identified as a security risk or with a history of problems with other computer systems will be denied access to the Internet through Margate City Public Schools.

Any user attempting to maliciously harm or damage data of another user or an area of the Internet, will be denied access to the Internet through Margate City Schools. This includes, but is not limited to, the intentional uploading or creating of computer viruses.

Network administrators may review files and communications to maintain system integrity and insure the users are using the system responsibly. Users should not expect that files stored on district servers will be private.

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Conclusion

I understand that the use of the Internet is a privilege and inappropriate use will result in cancellation of those privileges. I further understand that the system administrators will deem what is inappropriate use and that their decisions are final. The system administrators may close the access of any user at any time as required. In summary, users agree to be RESPONSIBLE, ETHICAL, EFFICIENT, POLITE, and LEGAL.

The expectation of the faculty and administration is that students and employees in Margate City Public Schools will adhere to the above policies. Furthermore, the faculty and administration claim no responsibility or liability for the content of public on-line resources and assume no responsibility or liability for student violation of this Acceptable Use Policy. We look forward to the expanding use of the Internet for learning.

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