Dear Parent(s) or Guardian(s),

As you may or may not know, our school provides access to the World Wide Web or Internet for our students in order to complete school assignments. Recognizing that using the Internet may worry or concern you, I would like to ask you to take a few minutes of your time to read about how our school district works to provide your student with the safest possible access to the Internet that we can provide.

Since the Internet, like most technological devices, can be used properly or improperly, we have designed a Safety Education Program to ensure that your child is aware of the dangers of using the Internet.

First, we discuss with them the proper use of the computer equipment used to log on to the Internet and emphasize that it is to be used only with constant teacher supervision. We highly stress to them that use of the Internet is a privilege and not a right and it can be taken away from them if misused. We teach the students how to use the Internet search engine to find material that is suitable for educational purposes such as information for a research paper. For their added safety, we have installed on all of our computers filters that prevent access to most web sites that deal with pornography and/or other illegal activities. We also provide them with a “White List” of school and teacher approved web sites that they may look at to find information. These web sites have been thoroughly examined by the district to ensure their safety for student use. The school explains thoroughly to the students what activities online are permitted and which are expressly forbidden.

Due to the growing problem of online sexual predators seeking to ensnare young students through the Internet, we thoroughly educate all students on proper online communication through email and, especially, online Chat Rooms. We emphasize that people “talking” to them online can very easily misrepresent themselves and/or lie to the students. We explain to them that they should never give unknown people online any of their personal information such as full names and addresses. We discuss the prospect of online socialization such as “Internet dating,” and the possible dangers that entails. We give them specific guidelines on how to recognize suspicious messages, activities, or images that they may find and to promptly inform their supervising teacher of them immediately. We also discuss how easy it may be to form contacts with “Internet Gangs” and how these “gangs” may often try to hurt, bully, or intimidate others online. We hope that they will keep these guidelines in mind away from school, too.

As teachers, we set up rules and procedures to be obeyed at all times while the student is online. A teacher will always actively monitor and supervise the students while they are using the Internet during school time. We will make sure that the student is using their time online in an effective manner and instruct them in proper time management while searching online for research. In addition to these strategies we will be sharing with the students, we will require them to read and comprehend an Internet Safety Education Policy Agreement/Checklist before they can go online. It is to be signed by the student as well as his/her parent or guardian. There is a copy of this agreement/checklist included with this letter for you to review as well. If there are any questions about this agreement or any other issue dealing with the Internet, feel free to contact the school office and someone will do their absolute best to answer your questions. We want to provide a safe learning environment for all our students while online and we hope you do too!

Sincerely,

Neil Fisher