Using the Internet Appropriately

The Roseland Public Schools (RPS) and Roseland Charter School (RCS) has made (and continues to make) a significant investment in bringing the power of the Internet to every student in the district. Every computer in every classroom, lab, and workspace is connected to the Internet. We want to insure that students and staff use our Internet resources efficiently and appropriately—in short, everyone should practice Internet Responsibility.

Roseland Public Schools and Roseland Charter School has a 3-part strategy for making Internet use as safe and efficient as possible for everyone:

1. Acceptable Use Policy
   
   The cornerstone of our approach to Internet Responsibility is our Acceptable Use Policy system. Each student must sign an Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) document before (s)he can use any of the school's computers or networked devices. This AUP places the primary responsibility for appropriate use on the student to be responsible and do the right thing at all times. Students are taught about responsible use by their classroom teachers and the site Computer Lab Assistants throughout the school year.

2. Supervision
   
   Staff members must also sign an AUP (similar to the students' document) and are bound by administrative regulations governing supervision of students. Staff members must supervise students at all times when the students are using the Internet. Staff members must be aware of and enforce the guidelines set forth in the student AUP's.

3. Web Filtering
   
   As a final line of defense against inappropriate material reaching students via the Internet, the district filters web access by all students and staff. This filter blocks access to web pages that are on a list of objectionable or inappropriate sites. Students who try to access such a site will get an error message, but the request will be logged by time and by computer from which the request was made. This information may be used to track down repeated requests for inappropriate material if a pattern of inappropriate use is evident.
   
   IMPORTANT: Our filter does not look at e-mail messages or at files that are downloaded directly to a computer. Students could still receive (or send) inappropriate e-mail messages or attachments to e-mail. Additionally, we are not able to filter the content of Internet search results. If a student conducts an Internet search, they may in some cases find that the returned results contain inappropriate language or references. They will not be able to access the actual web pages, however.

What We Filter

In general, we want to allow the broadest amount of access to the Internet consistent with what is appropriate for an educational system. Students have a legitimate interest in finding out about our society and our world, and an overzealous blocking system can prevent that in some cases. For example, a student may be researching drug abuse in California. We hope to provide as much access as possible to relevant sites for that student, while at the same time blocking access to sites that promote recreational drug use. Similarly, students doing research on human reproduction should not be denied access to factual material, but we still need to block access to pornographic sites that may be returned as a result of an Internet search.

At the present time, Roseland Public Schools and Roseland Charter School filters the following content:

• Sex Related

• Drugs

• Hate Speech

• Criminal Skills

• Access to Chat Rooms

• P2P sites

• Social Networks

Questions or comments about web filtering should be addressed to the Director of Technology and Information Services.

Listed below are links to some sources of additional information on Internet safety issues:

Common Sense Media - Privacy and Internet Safety

Common Sense Media - Parent Concerns

Netsmartz (Educational resource from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Discusses various Internet safety topics)

CISA Cybersecurity Awareness Program Toolkit

OnGuardOnline