Policy Brief: Kathleen Nugent
As educational institutions continue to integrate technology and internet resources at an ever increasing rate, a major focus should be placed on appropriate organization, implementation, and security measures to ensure the investment is most effective. Four issues of technological prominence needing to be addressed are:
* Privacy and Security
*Accuracy and Validity of Information
*Access, Digital Divide and Special Populations
*Copyright and Plagiarism
Educational institutions have an obligation to train both teachers and students in effective handling of these core subjects. Not only will effective policies and training increase the effectiveness of available technology, it will also secure the school from any possible adverse litigation. Additionally, many states are including a technology requirement to state curricula standards. Though No Child Left Behind may come under significant changes with the Obama administration, the fact remains that government has made clear the importance of effective technology use in the classroom and expects schools to address these issues appropriately and professionally.
Issues of privacy and security are not uncommon to schools. However, as school rely more on technology to sort and store private information, policies need to be implemented to prevent any wrongdoing. The internet is a public forum. Schools must be aware of the implications for both teachers and students and delicately address the balance between protecting privacy, enforcing a workable security system, and providing access to important information.
With an increase in technology, students and teachers both turn to the internet as a knowledge database. While many schools offer online databases, such as EBSCO, schools need to accept that often public resources are used for most everyday items. Schools must ensure that both teachers and students are able to weigh the accuracy and validity of any website used for school purposes. The information on the internet is overwhelming. Schools are obliged to provide the 21st century skills needed to navigate its resources.
The digital divide constitutes both access to and ability to utilize 21st century technology. Though the internet and computer access gap has decreased significantly, technology in the 21st century continues to grow at an ever increasing rate. For students to be literate in today’s world, they need to understand how to access, analyze, and apply whatever technology may be introduced throughout their lives1. Even if a school cannot fund computers for every student, they can teach the students how to utilize the resources available to them and apply solid academic skills to their future employment
Before any policy can be implemented, students, teachers, and administration need to have a clear understanding of the legal definitions of copyright, plagiarism, and fair use. Without a communal knowledge of these items, implementing a systemic on their appropriate use would be difficult at best. While many schools focus on plagiarism, due to its taboo nature in education, copyright is either confused with plagiarism or overlooked. This is a major problem as copyright law is monetarily punishable through the court system. Any pecuniary action would be compounded by court costs, lawyers, and poor publicity.
School districts must create comprehensive plans to address the major technological issues facing educational institutions today. The following briefs provide an overview of each category, a description of the key issues and two options for implementing effective policies.
As technology plays an ever increasing role in our educational systems, schools have an obligation to protect themselves and the privacy of their students. The more technology integration applied in the school, the more comprehensive the security measures that must be incorporated2. Privacy and Security no longer are two separate entities1. Both students and teachers must be aware that in order to protect vital information, such as identification information, some personal freedoms must be narrowed to protect the security of the greater population. The ability for a school to maintain a working security plan depends on the level of understanding and compliance of its students and employees1. To provide a comprehensive security plan, privacy and security issues should be itemized and prioritized2. Issues such as student and employee personal information, e.g. social security numbers, IEPs, and disciplinary records, etc… should be allotted the most privacy and security.
Option 1:
The school district needs to develop and post a comprehensive security plan. From this plan, the institution would develop an acceptable use policy (AUP), detailing the responsibilities of each teacher and student. Consequences for violating these rules should also be outlined. Each employee and student wishing to utilize the school technology provided must first read and sign the AUP. The AUP document should be easily accessible from the district website1. Modifications can be made on a district by district basis.
Please follow this link to access a model AUP
Pros: The AUP is comprehensive. By signing the document, any liability would fall on the user.
Cons: The policy is impersonal. The district cannot be sure that all the items are completely understood by the users. Additionally, though the consequences are laid out clearly, users may not be aware of how to best secure their information.
Option 2:
A security system is only as strong as its weakest link. Teachers and students must be aware of ways to protect the security of the school and the reason for the adopted measures in order to increase compliance1. The district could distribute the AUP to teachers and students and require a ½ day of training in appropriate security measures before the AUP can be signed. Addenda to the AUP should state that appropriate training has been received regarding ways to effectively implement this policy2. Teachers should be expected to require these objectives from their students as well.
Pros: Not only is an appropriate security policy in effective, all parties are aware of the terms and consequences. Additionally, all parties understand the best practices needed to implement these policies.
Cons: Time and training is needed to effectively implement this plan.
Sources:
2: http://www.computer.org/portal/web/csdl/doi/10.1109/HICSS.1997.663407
Accuracy and Validity of Information
When the internet first became a popular information source, many history teachers were confounded when students, given a brief research assignment on the Holocaust, returned with cited paragraphs stating the event never took place1. For the first time, students were turning to the internet before reviewed and accredited educational sources for information. It is now commonplace for students to turn to the internet for any problem, great or small. For its part, the internet is now a vast and overwhelming source of information. It is the job of educators to instruct students in weighing the accuracy and validity of websites as source information.
Though accuracy and validity are often grouped together, they are separate issues that often interact or build off one another. Accuracy of information refers only to the correctness of the information presented. The statements are correct and supported by appropriate, verifiable sources. Validity focuses on the context of the material as a whole. The idea that meaning can change based on how it is presented must be explained to emerging learners2.
Option 1: To combat the issue of student misconceptions of internet website intentions, a brief internet awareness class could be created. The school would mandate that all incoming freshman would be required to complete the course. The course would focus on general assignments that forced students to weigh the accuracy and validity of the website used for research. Additional projects would focus on utilizing access to school research databases and learning how to navigate and search for sources appropriately. Time would also be allotted in helping students differentiate between sources that need to be thoroughly examined for formal research and sources that are needed to provide a reasonably accurate and valid account of the information.
Pros: All students would be ensured as having received quality instruction on how to evaluate and apply web-based research. Students would formally learn the need for these skills and apply them directly to a project topic of their choice, increasing student interest.
Cons: It may take several years before all students are covered by the mandatory freshman course. Additionally, transfer students may require remediation. Also, teachers who require research from internet sources may need to adjust the task requirements in order to correlate with the school approved class.
Option 2:
The school could enact a mandatory “research” month. During this time, all classes in the school would assign a project, whether large or small, that required appropriate appraisal of research sources. Departments could create level by level implementation of the research project to ensure continuity throughout the school. Time would be allotted in class to review research techniques and the application of accuracy and validity of resources as needed.
Pros: Students would witness the power of the internet in acquiring information for all subjects. In addition, that realization would incorporate the need to weigh information based on accuracy and validity from all subjects. Further, students would hear both the importance and the means of performing unbiased internet searches from multiple perspectives.
Cons: There is little regulation regarding the research topic regarding the teacher’s task. Additionally, some teachers may require training in correct research methods. A survey of prior knowledge or a description of the individualized plans may need to be submitted and reviewed by an administrator.
Regardless of which option is chosen, each instructional method should focus topical concepts regarding internet-based research on3:
AuthorshipPublishing bodyPoint of view or bias
Referral to other sourcesVerifiabilityCurrency
How to distinguish propaganda, misinformation and disinformation
The mechanics of determining authorship, publishing body, and currency on the Internet
1: http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/99/02/circuits/articles/18hate.html
2: http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/Evaluate.html
3: http://www.library.jhu.edu/researchhelp/general/evaluating/
Access, Digital Divide and Special Populations Policy Brief
There is a digital divide in almost every school in America, regardless of the level of technological progress in the school. How is this possible? Special populations exist in every school that affects student ability to access technology. These populations could result from home or cultural backgrounds, age, personal or religious choices, economic circumstances, or even geographical limitations. However, all schools can lessen the divide among special populations, increase student performance, and provide students with the technological literacy needed to thrive in today’s technological world.
Option 1:
Equalize the technology gap by providing substantial access to high-speed internet to all students. Depending on your geographical area, this may be limited to access within the school community. First, special populations will need to be identified in your area. Preference for limited computer resources at school should be given to those students. Remember, equality does not always imply fairness. These preferences should be regarded as scholarships based on need. Regardless of whether you provide personal laptops to each student or increase computer lab stations at your school, students need to have access to computers before and after the ‘official’ school day. In addition to providing access, schools need to equip students with access to personnel able to guide students through efficient technology use1. This position could be similar to a reference librarian. Students who are found to be lacking appropriate knowledge of 21st century skills needed to be shown how utilizing the resources provided can make learning more dynamic and valuable. An after-school program could be created to address any issues needing remediation.
Pros: Students who do not have access at home are provided with access at school. Students are able to complete technology-based classroom assignments before or after school using the allotted technology. Special populations experience less of a technology gap, and will increase scholastic performance. As access equalizes, more focus can be put on academic aptitude.
Cons: As with every program set-up to address special population needs as a group, some individuals will fall through the cracks of the system. Additionally, parents may argue that any access provided to one student should be provided to another. Time an mediation may be needed to explain the steps being taken by the school to minimize the technology gap present. Additionally, students who are unfamiliar with technology will need to be self-motivated in utilizing the technology references provided by the school.
Option 2:
Create a short class or mandatory unit of a class to address effective use of the internet and 21st century technology in order to provide all students with equal technological footing. This could be accomplished by hiring a teacher for a short class that addresses technological skills needed to succeed in today’s professional and academic world. unit in the English class could be mandated to address technological access provided by the school and its appropriate academic use. Teachers would need appropriate time to become familiar with all topics addressed in the course and to create a plan that would effectively implement those items. Alternatively, a
Pros: Every single student is given effective, useful, direct instruction and access to technology and its functions1. Students are directly applying the knowledge provided to an educational assignment. Students are able to understand their needs better and have an increased relationship with a technology expert in order to address these concerns/questions.
Cons: Instructional time must be used to implement the unit plan. Students who are already familiar with the skills being presented may become placid and bored. Removing these students to a more advanced class would not be recommended, as that would continue the digital divide. However, offering these advanced students community service credits for tutoring would be a mutually beneficial option.
1: http://www.nae.edu/nae/techlithome.nsf/weblinks/KGRG-55X72C?OpenDocument
Policy Brief: Copyright and Plagiarism
As schools continue to incorporate technology into the classroom the risk for copyright infringement increases dramatically. Copyright infringement becomes especially troublesome as more teachers and students use resources from and post material to the internet. Past practices that have gone unchecked are now visible to millions and accountable far beyond the school community. The more school material posted on internet, the greater the chance of copyright infringement being noticed, and prosecution becomes more substantial.
Copyright, plagiarism and fair use are often used interchangeably in the educational system. However, each has a specific definition and carries different penalties. Copyright allows creators of original works to exclude others from using their work.1 Plagiarism forbids receiving credit for another’s work. Repeated accounts of plagiarism may constitute copyright infringement.1 While plagiarism can and should lead to disciplinary action by the school, copyright infringement is punishable by the federal court of law.1 Though many schools believe they are covered under fair use, as the courts look favorably to any action promoting education, more specific meanings apply. Educators are only covered under fair use when use of the material does not interfere with the original creators monetary benefits. Ignorance does not constitute coverage under fair use.1
Regardless of which option is chosen, an initial school-wide survey should be conducted to determine the current knowledge of the faculty regarding copyright, plagiarism and fair use. Approaching the issue from this standpoint allows more focused training to take place. Additionally, resources are not wasted covering items that are already established and understood by faculty. Before pursuing any faculty training, the school must also create a concise, yet encompassing statement of school expectations and policy regarding copyright law. The statement should include definitions of copyright, plagiarism, and fair use, an example for each, and clear repercussions for failure to ensure any of the issues are not violated. The statement should also make clear if the school owns the copyright to any faculty-generated work that has the potential generate income.2 As this issue may cause some concern among teachers, it is best if the survey includes questions regarding current copyright policy practices and assumptions of ownership.2
Option 1: Hiring a consultant, or amending the technology or legal advisors job to include specified group briefings regarding copyright policy. In this option, groups can be clustered based on prior knowledge, grade level, or subject. Due to the intimate nature of the groups, individual questions, concerns, or circumstances can be addressed quickly and accurately. Additionally, the school can be sure that all copyright issues and school policy have been addressed and clearly understood. This ensures that any infringement rests on the individual, rather than the institution. Drawbacks to this option include either expending additional funds to hire a consultant and/or a revision of a technology or legal coordinators contractual job description. Also, time will need to be provided for groups to meet.
Option 2: Creating a tiered, systemic review and revision of all information posted on the school website. Staff development time would be needed to both inform faculty of the rules and policies being implemented, and also instructions on how to correct any item currently infringing on the law. This option requires less time management as the entire faculty can be addressed at once, or in parts of several successive staff development days. It should be noted that completely overhauling the current policy system regarding copyright in one day is not advised. Teachers may feel overwhelmed by the amount of information presented, or the amount of work needed to correct any violations. By focusing on information posted on the school website, the school can ensure the greatest chance for copyright suits against the school is minimized. Additionally, because the same rules would apply to all work, regardless of where it is posted, the school can assume any further copyright violation is made by the individual rather than the institution. This approach would need to be tiered. For example, the first session would involve ensuring all notes posted to the school website do not break copy-right law. Addressed in this session would be teachers who repeatedly use a section from a book or online text. Though the text or excerpt is covered under fair use, if the text is used repeatedly without accessing a link to the original and the original site has both free and for-sale material posted, this could interfere with the original creator’s income, and be considered copy-right infringement. The next session could cover worksheets, reproducibles, animations, pictures, videos, etc…. Also to be covered is whether posting original faculty material to the school website transfers legal copy-right ownership to the school. While this option provides the school with a reasonable belief that all faculty has been provided with solid, clear, professional information and consequences regarding copy-right policy, there is no assurance of teacher follow-through and continuance.
Sources:
1 http://www.piercelaw.edu/thomasfield/ipbasics/copyright-on-the-internet.php
2 http://technologysource.org/article/drafting_a_faculty_copyright_ownership_policy/
Conclusion:
The increase of technology in schools not only directly affects student learning, it also affects school morale, equality, legal liability, and teacher effectiveness. School districts need to create a cohesive and thorough policy which addresses all topics of privacy and security, copyright infringement, accessibility, and evaluation of resources in a clear manner that can be feasibly implemented by teachers and students alike. It is clear that time and appropriate training is needed for both students and faculty to understand and apply the appropriate measures to safeguard school and student. Whatever policy implementation options are chosen, the school district should weigh the investment against the needs of the school population. Whatever options the district provides now will be magnified as new technology and resources come to light.
