The General Context

This feature allows the recipients of a message to forward information that they receive from an outside source quickly and easily. They can forward it to one or more people by using the "Forward message" function of their E-mail software. Recipients of the forwarded message can see the E-mail address of its original author and the E-mail address of the person who forwarded it. The author's comments or ideas are thereby circulated quickly to recipients that the author may not know. The message may be sent in its entirety or may have been modified by the person who forwards it without the author or the new recipient being necessarily aware of it.

Students and parents should be informed and fully aware of the consequences of using the "Forward" feature; it is important to encourage students to respect confidentiality and copyright.

The Issues

Transmitting Information in the Forwarded Message | E-mail Address of the Person Who Forwarded a Message | Attachments

Transmitting Information in the Forwarded Message

A message can be forwarded to a single user, to the members of a personal mailing list or to the members of a public mailing list.

E-mail Address of the Person Who Forwards a Message

E-mail addresses are always stored on a server which may or may not be under the jurisdiction of the school board. With forwarding, as with sending, the E-mail address of the person is disclosed.

Attachments

It is possible to forward a message containing an attachment (a document).