Student Email Address

LS/MW

15th October 2007

Dear Parent/Carer

As part of the development in the use of ICT within Whitgift School, all students have been issued with an email address.

They are able to access this email address at home and at school. This should enable students to complete work at home and at school and not worry about having to buy USB memory sticks or use floppy disks which often corrupt and prevent the student from downloading work.

This email address has been set up through the authority and is for educational purposes only, it is therefore monitored by Whitgift School. Students have the ability to change their passwords that the school has issued straight away and can continue re-changing their passwords for enhanced security. Therefore whatever activity takes place on the students email account is their responsibility. No –one should be accessing other student’s accounts, and students should not be giving out their passwords to any other person.

Any email containing inappropriate content or using swear words is automatically transferred to the administration account on which a number of teachers have access.

Unfortunately some students also see the use of email as a way of bullying other students, again this is totally inappropriate, and any student who is found to be bullying another student will be sanctioned appropriately. A back up of all emails is kept within the authority, so all emails that have been sent, and even if deleted straight after can be accessed if necessary.

Any student found sending inappropriate emails will have their email address removed, and the content of their emails sent home, a detention may also be issued.

This will have big implications on their GCSE ICT coursework as at least one module of Unit 1 is entirely based on using an email account.

Just before or just after half term students will watch a DVD all about email etiquette, to help them understand the benefits of email and what is and what isn’t appropriate.

Please discuss the contents of this letter with your son/daughter so that they fully benefit from the ICT privileges provided by Whitgift School.

Yours sincerely

 

Miss L. Spendlow
Lead Learner ICT