This chapter presents three topics related to responsible use of the Internet:
equity, copyright law, and the protection of students from inappropriate content
and experiences.
Here are some questions to guide your study:
Students who move through the educational system without having access to
technology not only are limited in the ways they might learn traditional academic
subjects; they are also missing out on experiences with technology that might
have enhanced their future work success and ability to learn in a world more
and more dependent on technology.
I.A. Equity and SES
SES (socioeconomic status) is a measure based on income, education, and occupation.
The principle of equity assumes differences in SES will be unrelated to the
opportunity to learn with technology.
Our analysis of whether or not equity exists recognizes that multiple factors
contribute to if and how students will use technology. Schools must:
These areas have not been developed in a coordinated fashion. In general,
early items on the list have been emphasized before later items. As emphasis
has brought attention, inequities have been noted and to some degree reduced.
The data related to computer use in schools and the related data comparing
schools differing in SES make-up is constantly changing and we will try to
use this web site to provide you with the most recent findings available to
us.
I.A.1 Areas in which SES differences have been noted
Studies have found the proportion of low SES students to be associated with:
It does appear that some of these SES differences are being addressed.
I.A.2 Home access
As educators begin to make greater classroom use of technology, access to
technology outside of the classroom also becomes more important. Students
with access at home can continue to work on assignments. Students with access
to technology at home can also have experiences with technology and with the
resources the Internet can make available that create differences in student
background knowledge (about technology and other topics). In contrast to the
positive changes in schools, SES differences in the home appear to be increasing.
I.A.3 The ETS Study
The ETS study allows an examination of the relationship among several potentially
important variables:
This study is especially noteworthy because it uses:
The large number of students and the independently developed method of assessing
achievement allows certain complaints about how research has been conducted
to be refuted.
In thinking about the research findings and the researcher's
interpretation of these findings, it is important to recognize the "correlational
nature" of this research. Research that gathers data without the assignment
of learners to instructional situations can establish that variables are related,
but cannot with certainty establish that changes in one variable cause a change
in another variable. Researchers construct possible interpretations of the
relationships that are discovered.
One way of interpreting the relationships that were observed argues that:
Some students do not do as well in mathematics because teachers engage them
in less powerful uses of technology, and one reason why teachers are likely
to use less powerful methods is the lack of appropriate professional development
experiences that are available to schools with a high proportion of low income
students. The data also seem to indicate that what students do with technology
is more important than the amount of time they work on tasks involving technology.
A second interpretation (not provided by the researcher) focuses on educators'
perceptions of the types of learning experiences that would be helpful to
students. It is possible that students working with large numbers of students
from less affluent home assume these students lack basic skills and fundamental
knowledge. The applications based on such assumptions emphasize remediation
of fundamentals rather than problem solving and authentic projects.
You are encouraged to review this study and draw your own conclusions.
The Federal Government has taken an active role in addressing SES inequities.
The e-rate, a program
focused on Internet access, has made a significant difference in opportunities
in all schools, but particularly in schools with many students from low-income
families (EdLink, 2000)
CIPA Filtering Requirements and the E-Rate.
I.B Gender Equity
Certain indicators have been interpreted as signs of inequity. These indicators
include:
Explanations offered for gender differences:
Internet activities may offer some advantages in creating equal interest
I.C Adaptive technology
Various disabilities can make the use of traditional technology more difficult
or impossible. Adaptations to hardware, software and content can improve access.
I.C.1 Mobility impairments
Mobility impairments may limit the ability to interact with a computer or
to perform basic functions such as inserting a diskette.
I.C.2 Visual impairments
The primary method for receiving information from a computer is visual. Screen
reader software allows this visual information to be converted to audio.
I.C.3 Web page design
Most web pages offer challenges to users unable to rely upon visual information.
This is the case even when screen reader software is available. Designers
often fail to plan for the needs of those who must rely totally on text (Note
- text can be converted to audio). Examples include the use of buttons, heavy
use of images to convey information, and complex screen displays based on
frames or tables.
Copyright is an important issue in education because the process of education
relies heavily on educational materials and on other materials that can serve
an educational purpose. In most cases, these materials were prepared assuming
compensation to the authors and distributors. Teachers need to be aware of
their personal obligations regarding copyrighted materials and they also need
to teach their students to respond the intellectual property of others.
II.A Apply general principles to the Internet
The Internet and Internet resources can involve educators with copyright issues
for which there are no specific directives. In such situations, more general
principles apply. The original law, written to by very open-ended, defines
as copyrightable "original works of authorship fixed in any tangible
medium of expression, now known or later developed."
Unless specifically stated, one should assume any product is copyrighted.
Any author's work is automatically protected from the time it is created and
does not have to display a copyright symbol.
II.B Rights of the authors
Copyright law grants five basic rights:
The author can can transfer any or all of these rights by granting a license.
II.C Fair Use
The principle of fair use defines some limited situations in which copies
can be make for teaching or scholarship without infringing on the rights of
the author.
Factors to be considered in determining whether or not a particular act of
copying represents fair use include:
It is difficult to define these factors specifically and a legal opinion may
be necessary.
It is important for educators to understand the difference between fair use
as it applies to their own professional work and fair use as it applies to
how they might use the work of others with their students. Fair use guidelines
for individual scholarship are fairly liberal. The guidelines covering what
educators can distribute to students are much more restrictive.
Guidelines covering what can be distributed are based on:
These interpretation of brevity, spontaneity, and cumulative effect vary with
the form of the content (print, music, etc.). Some specific guidelines are
provided in the book.
II.D CONFU Guidelines - More Recent Proposals
The Conference on Fair Use Guidelines provide suggestions that apply to the
creation of educational multimedia. These guidelines apply to the development
of multimedia projects for educational purposes and apply to work done for
a specific course or as examples of the work of teachers or students that
may be used for future job or academic interviews.
The guidelines provide specific limits on the duration of use, distribution,
and the quantity of content that can be taken from specific sources (video,
text, music, photographs).
The CONFU guidelines do not provide the focus on Internet resources that we
would prefer. Taking resources from web sites is not specifically addressed
and it is clearly stated that posting content created by someone else back
to the web, even for educational purposes, is not covered by CONFU. Another
attempt to deal with emerging copyright issues, the Digital Millennium Act
Copyright Act, became law in late 1998. This law includes a provision (Section
403) directing the Copyright Office to work with educators, nonprofit libraries,
and publishers to submit a proposal to Congress concerning distance education
and digital technology. This report has now been submitted (U.S.
Copyright Office, 1999), but further legislative action has to be taken
as of the date at which this web page was prepared. The report suggests that
web pages used in distance education be allowed to use some copyrighted content
under the same fair use guidelines that would apply in face to face classes
as long as access to the material can be limited to members of the class (e.g.,
using password protection).
Here are what we describe as Rules of Thumb.
Educators must understand the Internet does not exist specifically to support
educational goals. Materials obviously exist that are not appropriate for
educational use or for k-12 aged students. Aside from legal materials that
are just not appropriate for children of school age, the Internet does provide
the opportunity for criminal behavior (physical molestation, financial fraud).
Educators can offer reasonable protection by:
We do not attempt to downplay the dangers of the Internet, but we also want
teachers to recognize that sexually explicit material can be purchased in
most grocery or video stores and children may be subject to predatory behaviors
in the local park. Rather than exclude children from grocery stores, parks,
or the Internet, it seems most reasonable to use the technological restraints
that seem reasonable and to recognize that adult supervision is necessary.
III.A Safe Areas of the Internet
Some search services (Yahooligans),
Curriculum Sites (Blue Webn)
or Educational Portals (BigChalk),
and Chat Services (Kidlink) have been
developed for students and offer both approved content and supervision.
III.B Filtering
Filtering provides a technological method for controlling what Internet users
are able to access.
III.B.1 Firewall
A firewall is basically a computer and sophisticated software that control
the flow of data between two networks. A firewall can be used to separate
the Internet and the network connecting the computers of a school district.
III.B.2 Filtering Software
Commercian filtering software can be added to each computer. While several
types of protection can be implemented, this software works primarily by refusing
material sent from certain targeted sites. The companies selling these products
offer updates to the list of sites offering offensive material.
III.B.3 Browser filtering
Browers offer built-in filtering based ont he PICS (Platform for Internet
Content Selection) standards. The filtering system allows the designation
of different levels of tolerance within several categories (e.g., nudity,
violence). The filter settings are password protected. The major limitation
of browser filtering is that many sites have not established PICS ratings.
While the browser can refuse to display pages without ratings, a great deal
of appropriate, but unrated content is then unaccessible.
III.C Guidelines and supervision
III.C.1 Guidelines
Students need to learn behaviors consistent with appropriate Internet use.
They need to learn what content and situations they should avoid. Limits also
need to be established. Acceptable Use Policies outlining expectations and
consequences must be brought to the attention of students and their parents.
III.C.2 Supervision
Schools have a responsibility to monitor student use of technology and the
Internet.
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