E-mail and Internet Use Good Practice

 

As part of your child’s curriculum and the development of ICT skills, The William Amory Primary School is providing supervised access to the Internet. We believe that the use of the World Wide Web and e-mail is worthwhile and is an essential skill for children as they grow up in the modern world. Please would you read the attached ‘E-mail and Internet Use Good Practice – ‘Rules for ICT Use’ document, and sign and return the consent form so that your child may use Internet at school. Although there have been concerns about pupils having access to undesirable materials, we are taking positive steps to deal with this risk in school. Our school Internet provider operates a filtering system that restricts access to inappropriate materials. This may not be the case at home and we can provide references to information on safe Internet access if you wish. We also have leaflets from national bodies that explain the issues further. Whilst every endeavour is made to ensure that suitable restrictions are placed on the ability of children to access inappropriate materials, the School cannot be held responsible for the nature or content of materials accessed through the Internet. The School will not be liable for any damages arising from your child’s use of the Internet facilities. Should you wish to discuss any aspect of Internet use (or to see a lesson in operation) please contact me to arrange an appointment. We use the school computers and Internet connection for learning.

These rules will help us to be fair to others and keep everyone safe.
• I will ask permission before entering any Web site, unless my teacher has already approved that site.
• On a network, I will use only my own login and password, which I will keep secret.
• I will not look at, change or delete other people’s files.
• I will not bring storage media (e.g. USB devices, floppy disks, R/W CDROMS etc) to use in school without permission.
• I will only use the computers for school work and homework.
• I will only e-mail people I know, or my teacher has approved.
• The messages I send will be polite and sensible.
• When sending e-mail, I will not give my home address or phone number, or arrange to meet someone.
• I will ask for permission before opening an e-mail or an e-mail attachment sent by someone I do not know.
• I will not use Internet chat
• If I see anything I am unhappy with or I receive messages I do not like, I will tell a teacher immediately.
I know that the school may check my computer files and may monitor the Internet sites I visit.
• I understand that if I deliberately break these rules, I could be stopped from using the Internet or computers.
The school may exercise its right by electronic means to monitor the use of the school’s computer systems, including the monitoring of web-sites, the interception of E-mail and the deletion of inappropriate materials in circumstances where it believes unauthorised use of the school’s computer system is or may be taking place, or the system is or may be being used for criminal purposes or for storing text or imagery which is unauthorised or unlawful.