Coast Unified School District
Student Acceptable Use Policy
General Statement of Policy
Coast Unified School District provides access to the district computer network for electronic mail and the Internet. Access to e-mail and the Internet enables students to have access to electronic information that enables them to explore thousands of libraries, databases, and bulletin boards while exchanging messages with people around the world.
Limited Educational Purpose
With access to computers and people all over the world comes the potential
for access to material that is illegal, defamatory, inaccurate or offensive
to some people. The school district system has a limited educational purpose,
which includes use of the system for classroom activities, professional
or career development, and limited high-quality self-discovery activities.
Users of the system are expected to use the Internet to further educational
and personal goals consistent with the mission of the school district and
school policies. Uses, which might be acceptable on a user’s private
personal account on another system, may not be acceptable on this limited
purpose network.
Coast Unified School District has taken steps to restrict access to inappropriate
resources and information on the network and to monitor student use of the
network. However, on a global network it is impossible to effectively control
student access to material. The primary responsibility for access will rest
with the student. We believe that the benefits to students from access to
the Internet exceed any disadvantages. But ultimately, parents and guardians
of minors are responsible for setting and conveying standards that children
should follow when using media and information sources. To that end, Coast
Unified School District supports and respects each family’s right to
decide whether or not to apply for school access.
Use of the System is a Privilege
The use of the school district system is a privilege, not a right. Depending on the nature and degree of the violation and number of violations of the district policy, un-acceptable use of the school district system or the Internet may result in one or more of the following consequences: suspension or cancellation of use of access privileges; payments for damages or repairs; discipline under other appropriate school district policies, including suspension, expulsion, exclusion or termination of employment; civil or criminal liability under applicable laws.
The following pages contain a list of unacceptable uses and student rights. Please read these carefully. Signatures are required by student and parent/guardian prior to the student being given access to the system.
Student Internet Access
• All students may have access to the school district
network and the Internet World Wide Web information resources through their
classroom, library or school computer lab under the guidance of a teacher,
librarian, library technician, or other school administrator.
•
Students may have e-mail access only under their teacher’s direct supervision
using a classroom e-mail account. Students will not be provided individual
e-mail accounts.
Unacceptable Uses. The following uses of the district network are considered unacceptable:
• Personal Safety
o You will not post personal contact information about yourself or other
people. Personal contact information includes your address, telephone number,
school address, work address, etc.
o You will not agree to meet someone you have met online without your parent’s
approval and participation. Your parent should accompany you to the meeting.
o You will promptly report to your teacher or other appropriate school employee
any message that you receive that is inappropriate or makes you uncomfortable.
• Illegal Activities
o You will not attempt to gain access to the district network or to any other
computer system through the district network or go beyond your authorized
access. This includes attempting to log on though another person’s
account or access another person’s files. These actions are illegal,
even if only for the purpose of “browsing”.
o You will not make deliberate attempts to disrupt the computer system or
network, or destroy data by spreading computer viruses, loading illegal files,
or by any other means. These actions are illegal.
o You will not use the district network to engage in any other illegal act,
such as arranging for a drug sale or the purchase of alcohol, engaging in
criminal gang activity, threatening the safety of a person, etc.
o You will not post, submit, publish, or display harmful matter or material
that is threatening, obscene, disruptive, or sexually explicit, or that could
be construed as harassment or disparagement of others based on their race,
national origin, sex, sexual orientation, age, disability, religion, or political
beliefs.
• System Security
o You are responsible for your network account and should take all reasonable
precautions to prevent others from being able to use your account. Under
no circumstances should you provide your password to another person.
o You will immediately notify a teacher, school administrator, librarian
or district technology department if you have identified a possible security
problem. Do no go looking for security problems; this may be construed as
an illegal attempt to gain access.
o You will not download software or install programs unless it is under the
direct supervision of a teacher and only with permission from the school
administrator or technology coordinator.
o You will do nothing that could disrupt the use of the system for others,
including installing programs or files, deleting programs or files, modifying
settings, changing passwords, or reconfiguring the system.
o You will not in any manner physically modify, harm, or destroy any computer
or network hardware.
• Inappropriate Language
o Restrictions against Inappropriate language apply to public messages, private
messages, and material posted on Web pages.
o You will not use obscene, profane, lewd, vulgar, rude, inflammatory, threatening,
or disrespectful language.
o You will not post information that could cause damage or pose a danger
of disruption.
o You will not engage in personal attacks, including prejudicial or discriminatory
attacks.
o You will not harass another person. Harassment is persistently acting in
a manner that distresses or annoys another person. If you are told by the
person to stop sending messages, you must stop.
o You will not knowingly or recklessly post false or defamatory information
about a person or organization
• Respect for Privacy
o You will not re-post a message that was sent to you privately without the
permission of the person who sent you the message.
o You will not post private information about another person.
• Respecting Resource Limits
o You will use the system only for educational and career development activities.
o You will not download large files unless approved by the teacher in charge.
If necessary, you will download the file at a time when the system is not
being heavily used and immediately remove the file from the system computer.
o You will not post chain letters or engage in “spamming”. Spamming
is sending an annoying or unnecessary message to a large number of people.
• Plagiarism and Copyright Infringement
o You will not plagiarize works that you find on the Internet. Plagiarism
is taking the ideas or writings of others and presenting them as if they
were yours.
o You will respect the tights of copyright owners. Copyright infringement
occurs when you inappropriately reproduce a work that is protected by copyright.
Reproduction of a work includes using the work in another written form or
posting the work or portion of the work, on the Internet. If a work contains
language that specifies appropriate use of that work, you should follow the
expressed requirements. If you are unsure whether or not you can use a work,
you should requests permission from the copyright owner. Copyright law can
be confusing. If you have questions, you should ask your teacher.
• Inappropriate Access to Material
o You will not use the school district network to access harmful matter or
material that is profane or obscene (pornography), that advocates illegal
acts, or advocates violence or discrimination towards other people (hate
literature). This may include certain song lyrics and related materials.
o If you mistakenly access inappropriate information, you should immediately
tell the teacher or school administrator in charge. This will protect you
against claim that you have intentionally violated this policy.
o Your parent/guardian should instruct you if there is additional material
that they think it would be inappropriate for you to access. The District
fully expects that you will follow your parent’s instructions in this
matter.
• Your Rights
o Free Speech
•
Your right to free speech, as set forth in the District’s disciplinary
code, applies also to your communication on the District’s network
and on the Internet, except as otherwise set forth in the Acceptable Use
Policy. The school district network is considered a limited forum, similar
to the school newspaper, and therefore the District may restrict your speech
for valid educational reasons.
o Search and Seizure
•
You should be aware that computer files and communications on the District’s
network and all over the Internet are not private or secure.
•
Students will limit their use of the system to classroom activities, teacher-directed
activities, library-related research, or career development. Use of the system
for any other purpose, personal or otherwise, is prohibited unless approved
in advance.
•
The District may monitor your use of the Internet and the District’s
computer resources, including your e-mail, Internet files, and Internet access,
at any time with out advance notice or consent when there is a reasonable
need to do so. Passwords must be reported. Monitoring of the system may lead
to discovery that you have violated the Acceptable Use Policy, the District’s
disciplinary codes or the law.
•
Your parent/guardian has the right at any time to see the contents of your
files.
o Due Process
•
The District will cooperate fully with local, state, or federal officials
in any investigation related to any illegal activities conducted through
the school district network.
•
In the event there is a claim that you have violated this Policy of the District’s
disciplinary code in your use of the school district network, you will be
provided with at written notice of the suspected violation and an opportunity
to be heard in the manner set forth in the District’s disciplinary
code.
•
Major violations of the District’s Acceptable Use Policy by a student
will result in the loss of use of all computing equipment and Internet access,
even if this causes the student to fail a class. The student may be able
to regain computing privileges the following school year. If this occurs,
the student will be given the opportunity to remove his/her school-related
files.
•
If the violation also involves a violation of the District’s disciplinary
code, it will be handled in a manner described in the District’s disciplinary
code. Additional restrictions may be placed on the student’s use of
their network account.
• Limitation of Liability
o The District makes no warranties of any kind, either express or implied,
that the functions or services provided through the school district network
will be error-free or without defect. The District will not be responsible
for any claims, damages, or injury of any nature whatsoever, which users
may suffer as a result, whether directly or indirectly, of any us of the
school district network, including, but not limited to, personal injury,
emotional distress or suffering, or loss of data or interruptions of service.
The District is not responsible for the accuracy or quality of the information
obtained through or stored on the system. The District will not be responsible
for financial obligations arising from the unauthorized us of the school
district network, including, but not limited to, the purchase of products
of services.