Natick Public Schools

Laptop Information Session for Parents Fall 2011

because it’s the right thing

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Yet students experience a huge gap between their everyday lives and activities when they walk into a classroom. They now use paper, pencils, listen to one person lecture them, read dated textbooks, then memorize for a test.

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Engaging these students and making education relevant is critical...for our schools to continue to effectively and fully prepare the citizens and leaders of tomorrow.

Tools to Enhance the Learning Process

Student Equipment MacBook Laptop

13-inch, 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo - White 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 320GB Serial ATA Drive @ 5400 rpm, 4GB 1066MHz DDR3 SDRAM - 2x2GB, SuperDrive 8x (DVD ± R DL/DVD ± RW/CD RW)

3 Year Warranty External 500 GB USB Backup Drive Protective Bag Laptop Charger

Tools to Enhance the Learning Process

Robust and Secure Infrastructure

School Wide Wireless Internet Filtering

Robust and Secure Infrastructure

Students will not have administrative rights to the laptop!

Standard software image is maintained district wide.

Allows faster deployment and fewer surprises in the classroom!

Robust and Secure Infrastructure

Roaming Internet Filter

The same filter in school and at home

Internet Filtering Services

 The web filtering service we implemented within the district follows laptops everywhere they go.

 Supervision is still recommended in school and home – use of a filter is no guarantee – no monitoring solution is fool proof  Our filtering solution provides detailed reporting by username and computer ID. School staff has the ability to view the content of a student laptop at any time

Robust and Secure Infrastructure

Teacher’s view of student screens

Robust and Secure Infrastructure

Carts for Secure Storage and Charging while in School

Summary of Student Safety & Security

 No Administrative rights to the laptop  Roaming Internet Filter at School and Home  Email provided to students archived for 1 year  Anti-Virus Software provided  External Backup Drive provided  LAN School for Classroom Management

Help Desk Center & Technical Support

 Both Middle Schools now has a Help Desk Center and school technician:  WMS located in library  KMS located in Room 200 A  Technical support is available from 7:30 am until the end of the school day.

 Students can stop by the Help Desk Center with questions and problems.

After Hours Technical Support

 The school district has purchased an Apple Care Protection plan with each laptop.

 This allows you to contact Apple directly for help with hardware or software issues:  800-APL-CARE (800-275-2273)  http://www.apple.com/buy/locator/service

Logins/Passwords

 Students have been issued their login and password information in their homerooms  Students should not change passwords. The same username and password is used for network access, iPass, Moodle and Destiny, Google, etc.

 Students must not share their password with anyone!!

Data Backup

 Students are ultimately responsible for backing up their data.

 Files must be backed up via flash drives, CD/DVDs or external hard drive (provided)  Students purchased a flash drive as part of school supply list for students to take away data at end of year.

 Laptops will be collected by the last day of school each year and completely wiped to start next school year clean.

Laptop Care

Carry in provided case at all times Charge nightly Visit Help Desk Center at first sign of trouble (don’t put it off) Do not walk around with laptop open Do not leave unattended (charger and laptop) Avoid eating and drinking near laptop Careful when using around young children and pets Property of NPS, entrusted to the student to benefit their education

Taking Care of Your Laptop

     Do not put your laptop in your backpack, even if it is in the case Do not leave ANYTHING on the keyboard when closing your laptop Don’t use your computer as a folder to store papers Keep your laptop in your carrying case when you aren’t using it. Don’t drop the case on the floor, use it as a backrest on the bus, put heavy books on it, or cram it in your locker Keep your laptop away from dampness or wet weather, such as rain, snow, and fog

Taking Care of Your Laptop

 Keep your laptop away from extreme heat or cold. Leaving it in an unventilated car or in the sun could damage it. If your laptop has been exposed to cold conditions for a long period of time, let it warm up to room temperature before you use it.

 Close the lid gently from the center and wait for the sleep light to pulse before moving the laptop.

 Remember, hard drives don’t like to be bounced around, and screens will break if enough pressure is applied to them.

 The laptop must be returned in similar condition – no stickers, scratches, writing, engraving or defacement.

Using Your Laptop

 Set up your laptop on a stable work surface  Keep your laptop away from water or other liquids  Don’t eat or drink while using your laptop  When attaching the power adapter to the laptop, make sure the cord isn’t stretched too tight; it should be a little loose  Don’t insert things, especially metal, into any openings of your laptop

Using Your Laptop

 Be patient. Sometimes computers take a few seconds to think –so don’t start pounding on the keys if your laptop doesn’t respond right away  Plug in your laptop when you get home from school so your battery will be fully charged for the next day. Your laptop does not have a replaceable battery  If you have problems with your laptop, stop using it and ask your teacher for assistance, and/or report it to the school computer technician.

Cleaning Your Laptop

 Don’t spray liquid directly on the laptop  Do not mark the laptop in any way with markers, stickers, etc. Each laptop is labeled with a district identification barcode and student id label. Do not remove these labels

Battery Tips

 Bring laptop to school fully charged each day  Use until discharged – don’t short charge – let the battery go completely dead at least once a month  Please bring your charger to school each day in the event you need to plug-in.

 Review battery conservation tips in ‘Section 2 : Care and Maintenance” section of the handbook.

Protecting Your Laptop

 Be wary of theft – it’s very easy to walk away with a laptop -Keep in constant contact with your laptop -Do not leave your laptop unattended -Whenever possible, lock up your laptop

Laptop Warranty & Annual Fee

 All computers are covered by Apple’s warranty against manufacturer’s defects for three years.

 The NPS Student & Parent/Guardian laptop agreement needs to be signed and $75 check made out to the Natick Public School before laptops are taken home.  The Natick School District’s Laptop Computer Accidental Damage/Loss Policy is in place to cover most issues that may arise with the laptop

What the $75 will not cover...

If the machine is dropped (Apple voids the warranty) If the laptop/charger was “stolen” because it was left UNATTENDED If damage is due to not following the Required Use Policy

Laptop Accidental Damage/Loss Policy

Tiered approach for damage and repairs: -

Tier I

- $0 (Minor wear and tear covered by annual laptop fee) -

Tier II

- $100 (Moderate damage or part replacement, ie: broken DVD drive) -

Tier III

damage, $200 (More expensive repair due to spill cracked screen, dropped laptop) -

Tier IV

– Full value of the device if lost or stolen. GPS tracking will be used when a police report is filed.

Internet Safety in the Schools

Student Training  Students receive training on the use of the laptop  Students receive training on Internet safety

Teacher directed use of the internet

Students use the Internet only for educational research and activities Teachers monitor student Internet use in class Students are not allowed “free time” to surf the Internet Filter is in place at home and school on laptop Teachers weigh and research the sites used

Internet safety guidelines for Students

1. Never give out personal information 2. Never use parents’ credit card online 3. Never share passwords with anyone 4. Never arrange a face-to-face meeting 5. Don’t open e-mail if you don’t know who sent it 6. Don’t click on banner adds or pop-up ads on websites 7. Never use bad language or send threatening e-mail

School internet filtering

Roaming Internet Filter  Filters web sites based on categories of content  Updates provided by vendor nightly  Can block specific web sites upon request

Suggested Guidelines For Home Internet Use

Parents should set and enforce rules for home Internet use  Have computer in a common room (not in the bedroom with the door closed!)  Time limit on Internet, instant messaging, social networking sites, online gaming, etc.

 Parents should ask and know student’s personal username and password

Home Internet Safety

Suggestions concerning e-mail  Parents should have access to students’ e-mail  Threatening e-mail should never be sent  Attachments bring danger of viruses  Spam=Junk mail=Don’t reply

Home Internet Safety

Instant Messaging  Different clients: AOL Instant Messenger, Yahoo Instant Messenger, Microsoft Instant Messenger, iChat (iChat, Google Chat, Moodle Chat, Skype are turned off on laptops)  Any electronic chatting used by students is a violation of our AUP.

Home Internet Safety

Social networking sites  Various: Facebook, MySpace, Gmail Buzz, Twitter, MeeBo, BeBo, BlackPlanet, Buzznet, Habbo, imeem, Jaiku, MiGente, MyChurch, Windows Live Space, Xanga, and new ones appearing regularly Purpose:  Online communities of people who share interests and activities, and provide a variety of ways to interact

Home Internet Safety

Web-surfing Banner/pop up ads: clicking on them places a “cookie” on your computer, allowing websites to track your movements (from Wal-mart to phishing scams!) Never give out personal information, even seemingly innocent and unimportant info Never make online purchases without parent permission/supervision-- make sure website is secure (

https:

) before entering credit card information

Monitoring Student Activity

Check the History in FireFox (History, Show All History) If it is empty, ask why Click on an item to go to that page

Monitoring Student Activity

Check the History in Safari (Bookmarks, Show All History) If it is empty, ask why Click on an item to go to that page

Required Use Policy/Code of Conduct

Students will make available all messages or files upon administrator or teacher request Just like a textbook or a locker, NPS owns the laptop. Students are permitted to use it for educational advancement Administrators have capability to remotely view student computers

Required Use Policy/Code of Conduct

Use Appropriate Language When searching the web When sending messages When blogging/using message boards Cyber Bullying

Required Use Policy/Code of Conduct

Give credit where credit is due!

Following copyright laws Staff member responsible for training students and teachers on copyright laws

Required Use Policy/Code of Conduct

Prohibited access: Bypassing the web filter Using another student’s username or password Sharing passwords Downloading or installing Tampering with the hardware

Required Use Policy/Code of Conduct

Personal communications prohibited:* Chat rooms Instant messaging Social networking sites Hosting personal web pages *Unless school-approved, teacher supervised

Required Use Policy/Code of Conduct

Inappropriate materials: Materials that are unacceptable in a school setting Pornographic, obscene, graphically violent, vulgar Music, sounds, language, videos or other materials Do not download or transfer through an external drive

Required Use Policy/Code of Conduct

Keeping your laptop damage free: Do not leave a laptop unattended.

Keep pets, food, drink, and babies away from laptop . Laptop may not be used during school lunch.

Do not leave your laptop in a vehicle.

Unauthorized/Nonacademic Use of Laptops:

 The laptop comes pre-loaded with all the software needed for classes. Students are not allowed to install, uninstall, or modify any application, game, or operating system component in part or whole. Students will only be able to launch applications that have been approved by the school district.  Accessing proxy sites to bypass district web-filtering (i.e., finding other ways to get to restricted sites)  Using laptops and district network to exchange/share media files, such as mp3s or videos, that are in violation of copyright laws (i.e., illegally obtained). Any music or other commercial files downloaded to the laptop must be legally owned by the student user.

AUP/Agreements

    The Natick School District’s Acceptable Use Policy must be adhered to at all times (in resources file on student desktop and on all sites/in handbooks) Any attempt to bypass or disable district network security, filtering, or similar functions is considered a direct violation of Natick’s AUP which will result in disciplinary action All activity conducted on the Natick School District’s Internet/Network is monitored and can be tracked/traced. All use of the Internet/Network should be to further the student’s education and enrich the student’s educational resources.

The AUP and NPS Laptop agreement must be signed and a check for $75 for the NPS Loss policy must be submitted before a laptop will be allowed to be taken home – Please take a few minutes to review the laptop agreement before signing.

Resources

 http://www.natickps.org/districtinfo/forstudents/oneto one.cfm

 http://npsdigitalconversion.wordpress.com/