Faculty+and+Staff+Regulations

=Multimedia, Interactive Applications, & Web Publishing= The following regulations relate to the application of technology for school use (classroom application, academic interaction with students, professional communication, etc.). School use implies any technology used for instruction, communication, or submission of student work, this includes the use of any school equipment for the creation and maintenance of the technology application. Recommendations for personal technology use for teachers are provided as a courtesy for Burleson ISD Employees. District employees should familiarize themselves with board policy. (Board Policy related to technology could be referenced or copied here.) CQ Legal, CQ Local

**Personal Responsibility**

 * Burleson Independent School District employees are personally responsible for the content they publish online. Be mindful that what gets published will be public for a long time—protect your privacy.
 * When a BISD Employee publishes student work, it is that employee's responsibility to monitor (and edit if necessary) the student content to eliminate personal information or inappropriate content.
 * It is the responsibility of the BISD Employee to verify that all student published content online is approved by the student and a parent/guardian if the student is under 18 years of age.
 * Your online behavior should reflect the same standard practices and ethical conduct as described in the "Texas Teacher Code of Ethics and Standard Practices for Texas Educators."
 * Remember that online applications are an extension of your classroom. What is inappropriate in your classroom should be deemed inappropriate online and handled following the same disciplinary procedures as per the student code of conduct.
 * You should ensure that content associated with you, on district provided/approved applications, is consistent with your work at Burleson Independent School District.
 * Do not identify yourself as a Burleson ISD employee on any social network sites that are for personal use and not related to professional learning. By virtue of identifying yourself as a Burleson Independent School District employee online, you are now connected to colleagues, students, parents and the school community.
 * Just as you separate your personal and professional life, do the same when you are creating your social networking accounts.
 * When contributing online do not post confidential student information. It is important that all Burleson ISD employees abide by FERPA laws.

The District expects everyone to exercise good judgment and use computer equipment, peripherals, and the network in a professional manner. Your use of the equipment is expected to relate to educational, instructional and administrative purposes. However, the District does recognize that some personal use is inevitable and that incidental and occasional personal use is permitted so long at it occurs on personal time, and: Security and/or technical problems in the system must be communicated to the system administrator immediately.
 * Imposes no tangible cost to Burleson Independent School District;
 * Does not unduly burden Burleson Independent School District’s computer or network resources;
 * Does not interfere with the prompt and efficient performance of an employee’s job responsibilities;
 * Assures that students completing required course work on the system will have first priority for use of Burleson Independent School District equipment during and outside of school hours;
 * Is consistent with this policy and any Burleson Independent School District guidelines and regulations governing appropriate use of the system; and
 * Is not used for commercial for profit purposes or political purposes.

Personal gaming, instant messaging, social networking, etc... are prohibited during work hours. Personal email and texting should be limited during work hours (used for emergencies only), and should never interfer with work or supervision of children. (This includes, but is not limited to, professional or personally owned devices, such as cell phones, smart phones, handheld devices, computers/laptops, mini computers and other mobile technology devices.)

All electronic communication from you as a Burleson Independent School District employee to community members, students, parents, and other colleagues should represent the highest standard of quality, professionalism (correct grammar and spelling), and good judgment. Burleson Independent School District expects efficient, ethical, professional, and legal utilization of the network and services.

**Profiles and Identity**

 * Remember your association and responsibility with the Burleson Independent School District in online social environments. If you identify yourself as a Burleson Independent District employee, ensure your profile and related content is consistent with how you wish to present yourself with colleagues, parents, and students. Remember how you represent yourself online should be comparable to how you represent yourself in person.
 * Burleson ISD Employees are responsible for ensuring that no personal student information be included in student profiles housed in technologies or applications used for academic purposes.
 * Burleson ISD Employees should not identify any student, in any way, on or in personal use technology or applications in keeping with FERPA law.
 * Burleson ISD Employees, when uploading avatars to district provided/approved technology applications, must ensure that those avatars, and the avatars of their students, are school appropriate.
 * Remember not to utilize protected images. Images displayed on your site should be available under Creative Commons or your own.

**Social Bookmarking and Hyperlinking**

 * Be aware that others can view the sites that you bookmark.
 * Be careful of words used to //tag// or describe the bookmark. Testing your tags in a search is highly recommended.
 * Be careful of URL shortening services and verify the landing site they point to before submitting a link as a bookmark.
 * Attempt to link directly to a page or resource, if possible, as you do not control what appears on landing pages in the future.

**Instant Messaging**

 * Burleson Independent School District employees are required to get authorization to have additional instant messaging programs downloaded on their school computers. This is done through the Digital Media and Software Acquisition form available in Eduphoria's Form Space.
 * Avatar images and profile information should follow the same guidelines as the above //Profiles and Identity// section.
 * Before submitting the request, check the "Approved/unapproved software list."
 * Instant messaging for non-emergency personal use during instructional hours is inappropriate and unprofessional.

Requests for Social Media Sites
Burleson Independent School District encourages the use of innovative teaching and learning strategies, including the incorporation of emerging technologies in the educational environment. In an effort to provide innovative educational solutions, educators may use applications and or services hosted by third party vendors only if a comparable service is not provided by the district. In order to insure the ethical and responsible use of these technologies, it is important that //prior to implementation// all faculty members follow the proper protocol outlined by the district. Complete the Social Media Request form. This is for your protection.

Educators must complete a process of collaboration //prior to// integrating new technology in their lessons:
 * Inform and collaborate with Learning Technologies Staff, including the Learning Technologies Coach and/or the Learning Technologies Campus Liaison or the Director
 * Educators must possess a clear understanding of the technology tool and the educational advantage of implementing the tool prior to using it in the classroom setting.
 * Educators must define the educational impact of the new technology.
 * Educators must enumerate clear expectations for student outcomes.
 * Educators should have an understanding of the sites' privacy policy
 * Requests will be reviewed and the district social media guidelines will be updated periodically throughout the school year.

Safety Policy

 * As stated above, educators will always use district provided resources when available and only use approved sites when the district does not provide the needed resource.
 * BISD provides teachers, students and parents resources for staying safe on the Internet, including appropriate use thereof,
 * Students and parents must read and sign the Burleson ISD Acceptable Use Policy and the Student Code of Conduct before participating in any social media activity.
 * Teachers must present his/her students with instruction on Internet Safety using resources provided by the district.
 * Educators will teach students safe and appropriate behavior as social media creators and readers.
 * Educators will recognize the blog as a conversation for members of the class and will monitor all comments to the blog before they appear on the blog. If the blog is closed for class members only, the teacher may allow comments without approval, but must closely monitor them.
 * Educators will actively monitor the social media content for offensive language or subject material and monitor for cyber bullying.
 * Educators will protect student privacy at all times by not publishing a student’s full name or any other identifying information such as address, e-mail address, or telephone number.
 * All social media content must have a direct correlation to subject material taught in class and will not be used for social networking.
 * Educators must set consequences for social media misuse that follow the appropriate procedures and consequences listed in the student code of conduct.

**Copyright and Fair Use**

 * Respect copyright and fair use guidelines. See U.S. Copyright Office - Fair Use. Be sure not to plagiarize and do give credit where it is due.
 * Hyperlinking to outside sources is recommended. When hyperlinking be sure that the content is appropriate.
 * It is recommended that blogs be licensed under a [|Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License].
 * Prior to publishing anything where copyright is in question, contact your campus library media specialist.

[|Best Practices for Teachers Using Social Networks for Personal Use!] [|Blogging Guidelines for Teacher Students.doc]