Teacher Web Pages

Anexciting innovation in technology is the opportunity for District teachers and staff to create teacher Web pages. The Board and the administration encourage the development of Web pages by teachers and staff in order to provide information to parents, students and the community about classroom and student activities as well as instructional resources. To be considered authorized by the School District, teacher Web pages must be developed in accordance with this regulation using resources consistent with the District's Web presence.

Teachers and staff may begin the process leading to the creation of a teacher Web page by registering for training after obtaining the approval of the Principal or Supervisor.

In addition, the following guidelines apply to all teacher Web pages developed by District teachers or staff and housed within websites authorized by the District. All information must be in compliance with District policies, regulations, and Web standards.

Content Integrity

1)     All subject matter on the Web pages and their links must relate to:

a.       Curriculum and instruction;

b.      District authorized activities and services;

c.       Information about the School District or its mission.

2)      Safety- Consider password protecting your Web Page and giving the password to your students.

Information about students and staff posted on a teacher Web page should be general in nature.

Do not use students' full names on the Web. Also, for example, do not give specific locations and

times when listing a field trip or activity. Remember that this information is public for anyone to

access.

3)       Always refer to our organization by using its proper name, Marcus Whitman Central School

District.

4)      Confidential information regarding students, staff, or the organization may not be posted on teacher Web pages.

5)     Treat your audience with respect. Avoid any objectionable language, and use proper grammar and spelling at all times.

Copyright Information

Generally, you cannot post a copy of any copyrighted materials on your website without the copyright owner's permission. Merely acknowledging  the source of the copyrighted material is not a substitute   for  obtaining   this  permission.   Materials  that   may  be  subject   to  copyright   include photographs, logos, music, videos, cartoons, drawings/paintings/graphs/charts/animation,articles, and other Web pages.

Teachers and staff should assume that any such materials, even if found on the Internet and even in the absence of the ©symbol or other copyright notice,are subject to copyright.

1)     Under certain limited circumstances, teachers are authorized to use portions of copyrighted works in traditional classroom settings under the doctrine of "fair use," without specific permission. However, a copy of a copyrighted work placed by a teacher on a website is less likely to be seen as a "fair use" of that work. Therefore, reliance on considering such use on a website as "fair use" should be avoided.

2)      Generally,  links to copyrighted  resources  available  elsewhere  online may  be created  as long as the link merely directs the user to another site and does not cause a copy of the copyrighted work to be created and stored on District sites or Web servers. Include link disclaimer language:

The  District  has  made  every  reasonable  attempt  to  ensure  that  our  Web  pages  are educationally sound and do not contain links to questionable material or material that can be deemed in violation of the School District's Standards and Guidelines for Web Page Publishing Policy.

These links are provided for your information and convenience. By clicking on a link you will be leaving the School District's website. Please be aware that, while we make every effort to evaluate all the sites to which we link,we cannot endorse nor be responsible for the content provided on these sites. Surf Safely!

3)      Framing (displaying another site's Web page within the District's Web page design) is not permitted. Your link must create a separate Web page to appear.

4)      Students are the copyright owners of their own work. You must get the written permission of the student, as well as his or her parent, to post a copy of a student's work on your Web pages.

 Additional Guidelines for the Use of Photos and Images

1)     Written parental permission or permission from an "eligible11   student (one who is eighteen years of age or older or who is attending an institution of post-secondary education) must be obtained before posting photos of students on the website under any circumstances, even if the students are not identified on the website by name. This includes students whose parents who may have otherwise 11COnsented 11   to the use of their child's photo in other contexts by not 110pting out11   of designation of their child's photo as directory information under FERPA.

2)     When uploading a file containing an approved photo, please make certain the file name does not list students' names (ex.: SallyMae.jpg). If it does, please re-save the photo using another generic description  to  then  upload  onto  the  Web.  Students'  names  could  be  inadvertently  shared, accessed as part of the image's code, if not corrected.

3)     Photos of individual students or staff are not recommended for security reasons. Group pictures make it harder to identify a specific person in the photo.

4)      When using the School District logo, use only the standard logo and do not modify it in any way.

When using the logo of another organization, you must get permission in writing first.

5)     You may only use images on your Web page with the permission ofthe copyright owner, unless the image is from a source that specifically  grants permission  for such use. You cannot scan material from a book and paste it onto your Web page. Handouts created by anyone but you cannot be posted on the Web page. Clip art may be used if from a source that grants permission for such use.

Blogs, Podcasts and Vodcasts

In addition to or as part of a teacher Web page, teachers may choose to create blogs to engage students  in  effective  dialogue  on  selected  topics.They  may  choose  to  create  or  make  available podcasts or vodcasts for instructional purposes as well. Teachers and staff are encouraged to utilize Web 2.0 communications tools such as blogs, podcasts and vodcasts that are developed in accordance with this regulation using resources provided by and hosted on sites consistent with the District's Web presence.

Teachers who use blogs, podcasts or vodcasts as instructional tools should remember that their content may be viewed by anyone who has the ability to access the website on which the blog,podcast or vodcast  is located. Blogs, podcasts and vodcasts should  be reserved for classroom  use only and

 SUBJECT:      TEACHER WEB PAGES INCLUDING WEB 2.0 TOOLS FOR COLLABORATION (Cont'd.)