SOCIAL, ETHICAL AND LEGAL RESPONSIBILITIES IN THE USE OF TECHNOLOGY TOOLS AND RESOURCES

BY TEACHERS

Questions:

What is acceptable and appropriate use of Internet in schools?

What obligations do teachers and administrators have as a result of introducing the Internet into their
schools?

How can teachers teach students ethical, acceptable and appropriate ways to use the Internet?

Appropriate Use of Internet

1. Computers should be used to support existing curriculum.

2. Do not allow the computers to dictate teaching methods.

3. The attractiveness of the computer should not overpower the student learning.

4. Computers should not change the teaching methods. Their inclusion should simply help improve
learning

Obligations:

1. Acceptable Use Policy

a) The policy must explain the students’ responsibilities online

b) The policy must explain the connection of Internet usage to teaching and learning.

c) The policy must explain the consequences that will result from the violation of policies.

d) The policy must be agreed to by parents and students.

2. Equitable access in a school or classroom

All students must have equal access to computers regardless of gender, special needs,
socioeconomic status or race.

3. Teaching and Obeying Copyright Laws

Teachers must follow copyright laws and in turn educate students about copyright laws.

How can teachers teach students ethical, acceptable and appropriate ways to use the Internet?
1. Take care of technology equipment.

With malware and viruses running rampant, students must learn to watch what they download, click
and share.

2. Teach students to question the reliability and authenticity of a website.

Explore appropriate and safe sites for learning and research.

Many websites contain inaccurate or false information. Teachers can provide a list of
approved websites. Students need to learn how to evaluate websites and assess whether they
can trust the content.

a) Look for author or name of organization

b) Check author’s credentials

c) Look for type of domain

d) Look for educational and government sites like “.edu” or “.gov”

e) Look for links that say about the background of the website and the information of the
author.

3. Give protocols to the students to follow in the event something inappropriate appears on the
computer screen.

4. Only allow the students to use specific websites to use for research.

5. Require students to cite all of the website they use.

A. Copyright law, Fair Use Act and Creative Commons matter.

Students learn how to copy and paste without realizing the copyright implications.
Understanding copyright and related laws will help ensure students follow the rules in using
and sharing content.

B. Always give credit to original source.

Like citing references in term papers, students learn about the importance of using online
citations to respect copyright laws and eschew plagiarism.