Classroom (Photo credit: James F Clay)
Internet safety and education is always at the forefront of my mind when I work with technology in the classroom. It is therefore important for me to have my parents have an understanding and some control over their child's work and image as it relates to usage and access. Today, with the help of my amazing PLN (personal learning network) I wrote the letter and consent form I will be giving to all of my families. Since I know many others are also in the process of creating something similar, I thought I should share what I have.
Here is the link to the actual Google Document (I will be working on a Spanish translation through my district hopefully) and below is what the document looks like. Please feel free to use and modify to fit your needs.
A Letter on Technology in Mrs. Ripp’s Room
Technology serves a major function in this classroom to collaborate and connect with students across the globe. Safety and proper usage of the chosen technology is therefore vital for this classroom to be successful in its implementation. This letter is intended to inform and expand on the most common types of technology that will be integrated throughout the year, as well as serve as a consent form. Please note that the District Acceptable Use Policy for Technology is upheld and discussed throughout the year as well.
° Flip Video Cameras: Students use video cameras throughout the year to capture their learning and for presentations. I also use the cameras to capture specific student work to be published on our classroom website (www.mrsripp.blogspot.com).
° Digital Cameras: Students and I take pictures of our projects and students at work. These images are often used for publication on our website and once in a while are included in presentations I conduct to teach other educators.
° Skype: Skype is used to connect with others on a global scale. We use this video phonecall service to speak to experts, other classrooms, and anyone else we may be reaching out to. Students never Skype by themselves and it is always facilitated by me. All students get a chance to speak on Skype calls throughout the year and access is granted through a single classroom membership.
° KidBlog: This student blogging website is an integrated part of our learning. More information is provided in the “Welcome to KidBlog” letter and should be read. KidBlog provides us with an incredible chance to let others into our room as well as to hone our writing craft in multiple writing formats. Students will have individual accounts that I facilitate and the ability to access from home.
° Edmodo: This website allows us to discuss homework assignments and speak to specific other classrooms for the Global Read Aloud project. Based on a Facebook style template, it is not public, nor accessible to anyone without a membership set up by me. Students often use it to also connect with classmates outside of school or while on vacation and will have individual accounts moderated by me.
° Animoto: Students and I use this website to create multimedia slideshows with a soundtrack. Access is granted through one single classroom account.
° EduGlogster: This online poster creation site allows students to create unique posters with video, sound, pictures, and clip art incorporated. We use this for presentations and to showcase learning throughout the year with access being granted through individual student accounts moderated by me.
These tools are the ones most frequently used in our classroom. Others may be introduced throughout the year with proper guidance. We will not use any site that specifically states the child must be 13 to use it. Sites that can be used by students under 13 with parent permission, will have one classroom account monitored by me.
In order for me to have utmost transparency with the use of student work as well as their image, I have included a consent form to be signed and returned to me by Friday September 9th.
Dear Parent or Guardian,
Throughout the school year, I may include photographs, videos, or work of individual students or student group activities on our classroom website (www.mrsripp.blogspot.com), on my professional website (www.mrspripp.blogspot.com), and occasionally in presentations for other educators. Any student and/or their school work will be identified by first name only. No last names will be mentioned.
In an effort to respect parent and guardian wishes regarding the use of your child’s image or work, I ask that you read the consent form below, indicate your preference, and sign and return this document.
Please mark any of the choices below and return to school:
_____ Yes, I give permission to photograph, videotape, or audio record my child. I also give permission to display my child’s school work including class pictures.
____ Please do not publish my child’s photograph on the classroom website or any other Internet page.
____ Please do not publish my child’s work on the classroom website or any other Internet page. (Does not include group work in which child may have participated in)
____ Please only publish my child’s photograph in group photos, no individual shots.
____ I do not give permission for my child’s photograph, image, or school work to be used for ANY website publication or presentation.
Parent/Guardian Printed Name: _______________________________________________
Parent/Guardian Signature: _______________________________________________
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11 comments:
Wow. Really like this. As a primary teacher I use a handful of tech and web 2.0 tools as well. I especially like the descriptions of those tools which gives more clarity to their purpose and use. Something to consider for future AUPs.
Thanks for sharing.
I love this, thank you. I'll post a link with our material that we are developing. Thanks again!!
This is great! We have a school-wide permission letter, but it is vague. I bet you get a lot more okays by explaining what you plan upfront. I may borrow and do one like this along with the school one to inform about the various tools and how stuff will be used. Thanks for sharing!
Plenty of agreement options are great for parents, but might lead to some headaches for you down the road attempting to remember which permissions have been signed off on.
Personally, I would keep the options more simple; publish pics and work or not.
Your letter to parents is very detailed and I think not only informs them of the tools you intend to use but also as a side-effect might generate excitement about the learning students in your classroom will be engaged in during the year. Thank you for sharing it!
On another note, since you specifically state in your letter that you will not use sites that do not allow students under 13 to use them, I feel I should point out to you that Animoto falls into this category. I recently did some research into their TOS, and unlike other sites which state that students under 13 can use them with parental consent, Animoto's TOS makes no such distinction.
I wrote a blog post on the topic, including quotes from the TOS and links from Animoto's help forums, which you might want to investigate for yourself:
Do you use Animoto with students under 13 years old?
Sandy, Thank you so much for that. I had not seen that in the TOS for Animoto. I will need to investigate further but I am the main user with kids helping me. I will be reading your blog post as well, thank you so much for your feedback!
Thanks for sharing your letter. My district already has a media consent form for students, but it's a nice touch to include a detailed letter about some of the ways you plan to integrate technology!
I appreciated your explanation of which Web 2.0 tools you use. If we give parents information about our classroom learning tools, we give them greater understanding, and the chance to talk with us about our classroom learning.
Thank you so much for sharing your consent form. I have been debating what I wanted to write in my parent consent form for the upcoming school year, and seeing your version was very helpful.
Have a wonderful summer!
Your classroom sounds awesome!
I appreciated your explanation of which Web 2.0 tools you use. If we give parents information about our classroom learning tools, we give them greater understanding, and the chance to talk with us about our classroom learning.
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