From Acceptable to Responsible

In 2013 I was fortunate enough to get to go to the FETC. I came back with lots of new ideas and problems to work out. The 1:1 computing conversation was entering mainstream discussions and the first round of inexpensive Chromebooks had just come out. This climate generated a lot of thinking about refinement of policy, rental agreements, insurance plans and acceptable use agreements. Something that caught my ear a number of times was talk of shifting language in policy to stress responsibility. Acceptable use agreements were often just lists of things you cannot use school district technology for. Smart devices were really starting to proliferate and our schools were also providing greater individualized access. Banning and policing did not seem to be the answer. Moving the language to responsible use agreement put emphasis on personal accountability.

The network policy and acceptable use agreement in my district had not had a real revision since 1999, the year the first BlackBerry mobile device came out. The time was ripe. I researched and stole (with permission) liberally. Here are the three best examples I was able to find at the time:

• Forest Green School - Technology Innovation Plan
• Mooresville Graded School District - Technology Responsible Use Agreement
• Portsmouth School Department - Responsible Computer, Network and Internet Policy

With these examples I wrote a new policy. The responsible use agreement that goes with the policy is a simple reflection of that policy. Borrowing heavily from the Portsmouth work I added language to address social networking and use of students' personal devices. If you look at the draft I've shared you can see old policy lined out and additions in red for comparison's sake. The new policy moved quickly through committee with small changes and was passed by the board.

Over the course of this process I held fear that this work was done in too much of a vacuum. I didn't get overwhelming feedback from peers. I'm particularly sensitive to the passage about social networking:

• The District respects the right of employees and students to use social media and networking sites, message boards and forums, as well as personal websites and blogs. Personal use of these sites should not damage the reputation of the BCSD, its employees, students or their families and should be consistent with the School District’s educational objectives, mission and curriculum.

In the two years since it was written this language may have become antiquated. I would be keen to hear your suggestions for improving it.