- What is this policy about?
- This policy and its attached guidelines define the parameters of acceptable use by students and parents of ICT resources provided by and through the Education Directorate.
- Policy Statement
- The Education Directorate (the Directorate) supports the use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in ACT public schools.
- Use of ICT resources, including online services and personal electronic devices, both on and off school grounds is provisional on the expectation that it be consistent with the terms and conditions of this policy, the school’s code of conduct and student welfare policy.
- Prior to accessing the resources provided by the Directorate, students and parents are required to read this policy (as well as any attached documents) and, where applicable sign an Acceptable Usage Statement.
- The Directorate, and the school as its representative, reserves the right to revoke, suspend or terminate the access permissions of any user at any time, with or without notice.
- Users should be aware that usage data will be logged, maintained, backed-up, archived and monitored for computing activities accessing ACT Government networks and resources. This includes workstations, laptops, servers, printers, network connected devices, and personal electronic devices including (but not limited to) smart phones and tablets.
- Whilst the Directorate provides filtering that will minimise inadvertent access to inappropriate content on the internet, it is not possible to guarantee that students will not be exposed to inappropriate content at school. Students who seek to deliberately circumvent these filters will be considered to be in breach of this policy and will be sanctioned accordingly.
- The Education Act 2004 allows for the exclusion of students from school activities if their actions compromise the good name of the school or the safety or wellbeing of other students. This includes online activities.
- Who does this policy apply to?
- This policy applies to all those enrolled to attend a school, course or program administered by the Directorate and those members of the school community, such as parents and carers, who access Directorate ICT services and resources.
- Those employed by the ACT Government, including those on Australian School-Based Apprenticeships and Work-Experience placements, are classified as ‘workers’ under the Whole-of-Government Acceptable Use of ICT Resources Policy (policy no. WhoG-136) managed by Shared Services - ICT. As such, their acceptable use of ICT resources is to be managed under the auspices of that policy.
- Context
- Students will use ICT in a variety of ways including class work, homework, projects and assignments; as well as collaboration and communication with others (including - but not limited to - students, teachers, guest speakers, community members and international experts) across the ACT and around the world - sharing ideas, challenges, knowledge and information.
- Effective use of ICT allows schools to strengthen communication with parents and carers, and streamline administrative processes.
- Responsibilities
- Principal: The school principal is responsible for implementing this policy.
- Policy Owner: The Chief Information Officer is responsible for this policy.
- Monitoring and Review
- The Policy Owner monitors the policy. This includes an annual scan of operation and review. A full review of the policy will be conducted within a three year period.
- Contact
- For support contact Digital Strategy, Services and Transformation on (02) 6205 6749 or email DSST@act.gov.au.
- Complaints
- Any concerns about the application of this procedure or the procedure itself, should be raised with:
- the school principal in the first instance;
- the Directorate’s Liaison Unit on (02) 6205 5429;
- online at https://www.education.act.gov.au/about-us/contact_us;
- see also the Complaints Policy on the Directorate’s website.
- Any concerns about the application of this procedure or the procedure itself, should be raised with:
- References
- Definitions
- ICT resources: refer to the hardware, software, and services related to information and communication technologies (ICT).
- A parent: is a person having parental responsibility for the child under the Children and Young People Act 2008 including a carer appointed under that Act.
- PEDs or Personal Electronic Devices: refers to (but is not limited to) workstations, laptops, tablet devices and smart phones which are owned by individual users and brought to the school.
- Third Party Web Services: refers to external web services used in an educational capacity that are not hosted within the Directorate’s environment.
- Users: refers to students, parents, guardians and community members that access the Directorate’s ICT resources.
- Legislation
- The Copyright Act 1968 (Cwlth) defines the acceptable use of copyright material
- The Education Act 2004 provides for the operation and governance of ACT public schools. The Act allows for the exclusion of students from school activities if their actions compromise the good name of the school or the safety or wellbeing of other students. This includes online activities.
- Implementation Documents
- Communities Online: Acceptable Use of ICT - Parents and Students Guidelines
- Related Policies and Information
- ACT Government: Acceptable Use of ICT Resources
- ACT Government: ICT Security
- ACT Government: Mobile Devices
- Definitions
Communities on Line: Acceptable Use of ICT - Parents and Students Policy: COAUIPS201310 is the unique identifier of this document. It is the responsibility of the user to verify that this is the current and complete version of the document, available on the Directorate’s website at http://www.education.act.gov.au/publications_and_policies/school_and_corporate_policies/A-Z.
Policy Identifier: COAUIPS201310
Updated: December 2017
Implementation Documents:
Communities Online: Acceptable use of ICT - Parents and Students Guidelines ( 70.2 KB)
Appendix i. Sample Acceptable Use of ICT Statement – Parents or Guardians ( 63.8 KB)
Appendix ii. Sample Acceptable Use of ICT Statements – Students ( 70.8 KB)
Appendix iii. Sample Acceptable Use of PEDs in Schools Agreement ( 65.7 KB)
Related Policies and Information:
- Acceptable Use of ICT Resources
- ICT Security
- Mobile Devices