Grinnell Middle School
Laptop Roll-Out Night:
August 20, 2013
PURPOSE: To inform parents & students of the
expectations, policies, protections, care &
maintenance information, & security information
that are outlined in the G-N Acceptable Use
Agreement.
2012-13 PARENT TECHNOLOGY SURVEY
RESULTS
Top 10 Benefits Voiced By Parents:
10. We are teaching them to use less paper
9. Helped to make students more responsible
8. Have helped students to become more organized
7. Students are better able to collaborate with peers
6. Can easily access their grades & progress reports
5. Ability to access and analyze information
4. Project-based & innovative assignments
3. Communication with teachers has greatly improved
2. Familiarity with technology tools & applications
1. Developing research skills & writing skills
2012-13 PARENT TECHNOLOGY SURVEY
RESULTS
Top 10 Concerns Voiced By Parents:
10. Not wanting the machines to come home with them
9. Access to games and other non-academic programs
8. Inability to download programs that they need
7. Lack of parent controls
6. Too many tools for students to master (LMS, sites, etc.)
5. Cyber bullying / increased student-student incivility
4. Social media concerns
3. Lack of supervision (both at school & home)
2. Ability to look at inappropriate content on the web
1. Potential contact with on-line predators
POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS/SUGGESTIONS FOR
CONCERNS:
Not wanting the machines to come home with
them: Upon parent request, we can keep the laptop at
school during non-school hours
Access to games & other non-academic programs:
The school will be more vigilant in terms of what students
have on their computers; Students that have illegally
downloaded or installed materials will have their computers
re-imaged
Inability to download programs they need: Students
can request software they need from the G-N Website
(under Technology Resources)
POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS/SUGGESTIONS FOR
CONCERNS (cont.):
Lack of Parent Controls: The school owns the laptops,
the parents set the rules at home – your house, your child,
your rules
Too Many Tools: We are moving to a unified LMS
(learning management system) called CANVAS for grades 7
and 8 and Edmodo for grades 5-6 that teachers will be
using in their classes incrementally; students will only
need to access their course materials through CANVAS or
Edmodo
Cyber-Bullying/Student-Student Incivility: Gaggle
does pick up some content that constitutes bullying types
of behavior; However, the best way to catch this is for the
student to show a teacher, bring it to the office, print it off,
or take a screenshot (“Shift”+”Command”+”4”)
POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS/SUGGESTIONS FOR
CONCERNS (cont.):
Social Media Concerns: Parents will be given student G-
Mail usernames and passwords upon request to monitor
mail & chat; Parents can also require their child to ‘friend’
them on Facebook and can follow them on Twitter
Lack of Supervision: At school, student computers are
monitored by the office – we also have an HMS called
“Gaggle” that notifies us of inappropriate content being
utilized; At home, the parents can set the boundaries in
terms of supervision
Ability to look at inappropriate content: The iBoss
filtering system works both at school and on other wi-fi
network sources, however, does not filter everything;
100% content filtering is impossible & supervision is
necessary
POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS/SUGGESTIONS FOR
CONCERNS (cont.):
Potential contact with on-line predators: Monitoring
your child’s Facebook & Twitter accounts, G-mail, chat, etc.
so that you know who your child is communicating with is a
first step; Secondly, consistently educating students on
the dangers of sharing personal information with anyone is
a “double-pronged” approach (parents & school); HS
students will have various Seminars devoted to cybersafety, cyber-security, and digital literacy information
throughout the school year
Best tips for parents:
1)
2)
3)
Know your students usernames & passwords
Have them show you what they are doing on their laptop
Set the expectations for use at home
OVERVIEW OF ACCEPTABLE USE POLICIES:
-
The machine is the property of the district
- Intended for educational use, to support the learning
environment – not to replace teaching, but as a tool
- Usage is a privilege, not a right
- The school retains the right to inspect, confiscate, &
reimage the machine at any time
-
Student expectations for use of the laptop:
- Don’t share your machine, parts/pieces, or passwords
- Should be in your possession or secured (on you, in your
locker, at home; NOT in your car, NOT at your friends
house, NOT laying around the school, locker rooms, or
cafeteria)
- Bring it to school charged & ready each day
OVERVIEW OF ACCEPTABLE USE POLICIES:
-
Student expectations for use of the laptop:
-
-
-
Save & back up your work.
Students who do not have permission to take their
laptops home need to make arrangements with their
Tiger Time teacher as to where they will take their
laptop at the end of the day.
Use of the machine and/or programs to bully or harass
others will result in the confiscation of the laptop
Use of the machine to illegally download materials or
programs will results in the confiscation of the laptop
Student care and maintenance of the laptop:
-
Carrying case; Don’t deface the machine; Keep them on
a flat surface; Don’t use them @ lunch or around food &
drinks; BOTTOM LINE: Treat this as if it were your own
-
Student care and maintenance of the laptop:
-
-
Consequences for misuse:
-
-
Wind your cord carefully; Wait until your power light
is pulsing before you put it away; Don’t remove the
ID tags on your machine; BOTTOM LINE: Treat this
as if it were your own
Confiscation of the machine
Internet/networking capabilities deactivated
Reimaging of the machine
Detention, suspension, expulsion
Civil or criminal liability under applicable laws
Damage fee schedule: 1st incident - $100; 2nd
incident - $200, 3rd incident – up to full cost of repair
- You could be charged for the full cost of the machine if
the damaged is caused by gross negligence
HMS GAGGLE
- Stands for “Human Monitoring System”
- Email, Chat, & Internet filter that notifies the
student & administration if the content is
inappropriate
- Reasons include:
-
Profanity / Racism / Inappropriate Language
Nudity / Sexual Content
Violence / Abuse-Self
Violence / Rape / Abuse-Others
Alcohol / Smoking / Drugs
- Warnings are sent to the student on the 1st &
2nd violations; Accounts are suspended on the 3rd
(administration can override suspensions in
benign cases)
HMS GAGGLE (cont.):
- Levels of severity include:
- Warning: 3 warnings include the student & account
restrictions applied to the 3rd violation
• Administration notified on 3rd violation
- Q Con: Questionable content (self harm, drug
usage, etc.)
• Administration notified on all Q Con situations
- PSS: Possible student situation (safety situations
including self-abuse/harm, violence or immanent
threats to anyone, possible sales or procurement of
illegal substances)
• Administration notified by phone from Gaggle in all
PSS situations
HMS GAGGLE (cont.):
- Additional information:
- When violations occur, a conversation will
take place between the student and the
administration and/or school counselor
- Students’ accounts can be reinstated by the
administration if an error has occurred (upon
review at the request of the student)
- Parents may request to have information
from Gaggle about their students’ accounts
sent to them via email from the
administration
- Law enforcement may request records from
Gaggle upon serious violations
Digital Media Areas of Focus for Class
Meetings
• Internet Safety
• Privacy & Security
• Relationships & Communication
• Cyber-bullying
• Digital footprints & Reputation
• Self-Image and Identity
• Information Literacy
• Creative Credit & Copyright Information
• Each grade level will be doing about 5-6
sessions per year in which each of these are
covered (some, of course, will overlap). These
will be done during classroom meetings that meet
once a week.

What to do if . . . (for students)
-
I have a problem with my laptop?
-
Tell your teacher -> take it to the help desk in the GMS Media
Center (it might be a quick fix or it might be something that
needs more intensive tech help)
-
Other students are sending me inappropriate
messages or materials?
-
Tell your teacher -> take a screenshot of it, come to the office
for help
-
I get “gaggled”?
-
After the 3rd Offense, your Google services will be suspended
for a length of time; if you feel you have been gaggled
unfairly, come to the office and see Mrs. Hegg-Dunne
-
I lose my information?
-
See Mr. Kabulsky in the media center and always back up
your stuff!

What to do if . . . (for parents)
-
My student is spending time on non-academic
programs?
-
Supervise them during their homework time, set limits on
the usage at home, check their grades on-line
-
You are unsure of child’s online activities?
-
Know you’re their passwords and account information,
follow them on Twitter and have them friend you on FB
If you suspect something criminal is happening
(inappropriate contact online, etc.) don’t hesitate to call us
or the police to check it out
-
-
My student is being bullied or is bullying
someone else?
-
Have them show you what’s happening online, take a
screenshot if possible and contact the Middle School Office
Reminders . . .
1st day of school information . . .

*Classes start at 8:00 a.m.
*Report to your Tiger Time teacher.