Code of Conduct

To ensure safe and responsible use of the Internet and of the communications infrastructures provided by schools, each school board should establish a usage policy for students that includes rules, guidelines and a code of conduct for the use of the network and of collaboration tools. This policy must:

• stress the need to respect the educational purposes of the network
• define the educational goal by describing the activities planned
• require that the users of the network and other related networks be respected
• require the respect of copyright
• protect personal and identifying information
• require the respect of the integrity of the equipment and the network
• require regular virus checks
• prohibit pirating of computer software
• ensure the safety and confidentiality of data, software and programs
• prohibit the modification or illegal use of data, software and programs, including access codes
• prohibit illegal or inappropriate messages and documents downloaded to the network (hateful or sexually explicit material, graphic violence, discrimination based on social, religious, cultural or moral grounds)
• include rules governing ownership and storage of messages and data
• define the responsibilities, limits or restrictions related to the use of the network that are specific to the school body
• define the rights and powers of the school board or school
• indicate the penalties applied in the event of failure to comply with the policy

  [Free translation]
  It involves clearly setting out the standards for using the Internet. A policy regarding acceptable can take the form of a contract between the students and the teacher which-depending on the students' age-may be brought to the attention of the parents. The policy defines what may and may not be done on the Internet and sets forth the consequences of undesirable behaviour. . . .

  The age of the users and their required degree of protection should be taken into account in drawing up the policy. Thus, the rules for elementary students will need to be different from those for secondary students. These rules will have to be expressed in a language that is suited to the level of maturity of the students to whom they apply.

  -Implantation de services de courriel dans les écoles : exigences à satisfaire afin d'assurer la protection des droits des personnes et le partage des responsabilités (Université de Montréal, Centre de recherche en droit public [Québec: Conseil du trésor, 2000], 15.
  An example of a usage policy is provided on page 16.)

The same document suggests that a code of conduct be written using language that is suited to the age and level of maturity of students. The code would be submitted to students for signature, and would require, among other things, that they:

• be polite and act responsibly in their E-mail messages
• avoid offensive or defamatory language, racial or ethnic comments and harassment
• respect the privacy of other users
• refrain from misleading others as to their identity (imposture)
• use the Internet exclusively to access educational sites
• refrain from using the network to send obscene material
• respect the property of others and refrain from trying to access the files of other users fraudulently
• refrain from trying to damage their computer or the network in any way
• refrain from disclosing their name, address or telephone number; avoid revealing personal information about other people or about themselves without first verifying the identity of the requester; and, when in doubt, refrain from identifying themselves
• refrain from using the Internet for commercial purposes

Teachers must make sure they are familiar with the usage policy, must explain it and the code of conduct to the students, and must inform the parents of the policy and the code of conduct.

Additional Reference Material

Youth section of CBC Web site

Tech Tips
Introduction

Youth section of Radio-Canada Web site

Trousse à outils-Profs et parents : La nétiquette

 

Working document-Table de concertation régional en TIC-Mauricie-Centre-du-Québec

Code d'éthique pour l'utilisation du réseau Internet (PDF format also available.)

 

Example-Commission scolaire de la Riveraine

Informations et cyber-règles destinées aux élèves du primaire