Standards and Purpose

Welcome:
My name is Jess Malinky. I'm currently a 10th grade Social Studies teacher at Brooke High School in Wellsburg, WV.



Goals:
The goals of this blog are to educate students, parents, and the community about the various threats lurking in the online world; how to protect themselves from these threats; and where to report misuse of the internet.



WV Content Standards:

21.0.9-12.3.TT.4

Student adheres to acceptable use policy and displays ethical behaviors related to acceptable use of information and communication technology (e.g. privary, security, copyright, file-sharing, plagiarism); student predicts the possible cost and effects of unethical use of technology (e.g. consumer fraud, intrusion, spamming, virus setting, hacking) on culture and society; students identify the methodologies that individuals and business can employ protect the integrity of technology systems.





21C.0.3-4.3TT.4

Student complies with county acceptable use policy. Student identifies the need for acceptable use policies (AUP), discusses the basic issues related to resposible use of technology and information, describes personal consequences of inappropriate use and begins to cite sources for information found through electronic searches.



21C.0.5-0.3TT.4

Student complies with county acceptable use policy. Students discuss legal and ethical behaviors related to the acceptable use of information and communications technology (e.g. privacy, security, copyright, file-sharing, plagiarism) and predicts the possible effects of unethical use of technology (e.g. consumer fraud, intrusion, spamming, virus setting, hacking) on the individual and society, as well as identify methods for addressing these risks.



Purpose:

This blog is intended to provide information about safe use of the internet. It is designed to educate students, parents, and members of the community of the risks posed in the cyber world as well as provide them with strategies to reduce their risks online.







Legal and Ethical Uses of the Web


Image Source: http://www.deanofstudents.utexas.edu/  


DID YOU KNOW?...
According to a study by Microsoft Corp. in 2008, students are less likely to illegally download media online when they know the laws.  Almost half of the teenagers surveyed (49 percent) said they are not familiar with the rules and guidelines for downloading images, literature, music, movies and software from the Internet. Only one in 10 (11 percent) said they understood the rules “very well.”  (Source: http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2008/feb08/02-13MSIPSurveyResultsPR.mspx) Microsoft News Center




WHAT DOES COPYRIGHTING, FAIR USE, and ILLEGAL DOWNLOADING MEAN?

According to http://www.wikipedia.com/, a copyright is “a set of exclusive rights granted to the author or creator of an original work, including the right to copy, distribute and adapt the work.”
Examples:  Copyrighting was originally reserved for books, but has been expanded to include the following:  maps, charts, engravings, prints, musical compositions, dramatic works, photographs, paintings, drawings, sculptures, motion pictures, sound recordings, computer programs, choreography, and architectural works.  (Source http://www.wikipedia.com/)

According to http://www.wikipedia.com/,  fair use is a “limitation and exception to the exclusive right granted by copyright law to the author of a creative work, is a doctrine in United States copyright law that allows limited use of copyrighted material without acquiring permission from the rights holders.
Examples of fair use include “commentary, criticism, news reporting, research, teaching, library archiving and scholarship.” (Source: http://www.wikipedia.com/)


Illegal downloading can be defined as downloading or sharing files for free when they are intended for sale, such as copyrighted music or videos.  (Source: http://www.urbandictionary.com/)

What can happen to you if you are caught violating copyright laws?
Most people don’t think illegally downloading music or other types of media is a serious theft issue.  However, the Federal Bureau of Investigation takes this matter very seriously.  In fact, they have recently created an Intellectual Property Theft Task Force to seek out offenders and prosecute them for their crimes.

According to the University of Texas website (http://www.deanofstudents.utexas.edu/),  “violators of copyright laws can be held liable for a minimum of $750 per violation (each file is a single violation), so it costs the students thousands of dollars to settle the lawsuits out of court. A copyright violation is legally known as "strict liability", which means your knowledge or intent to perform an illegal act is not necessary for you to be liable. If the violations exceed $2,500 in penalties, and if the RIAA or MPAA could prove you had actual intent to violate their copyrights, criminal sanctions could be pursued.”

According to www.justice.gov, first time offenders convicted of  “the unauthorized reproduction or distribution, during any 180-day period, of at least 10 copies or phonorecords, or 1 or more copyrighted works, with a retail value of more than $2,500 can be imprisoned for up to 5 years and fined up to $250,000, or both.”  Previously convicted offenders “may be sentenced to a maximum of 10 years imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, or both.”

Read the true stories of people convicted of copyright infringement:
New York Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Copyright Violation for Illegally Uploading Copy of X-Men Movie: Read the full article
Woman punished $1.9 million for illegal downloads: Read the full article

What About Plagiarism?

According to http://www.wikipedia.com/, Plagiarism is defined in dictionaries as the "wrongful appropriation," "close imitation," or "purloining and publication," of another author's "language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions," and the representation of them as one's own original work,
Examples: Examples of plagiarism could be copying another students assignment and submitting it as your own work, or copying and pasting information from the internet into a research paper without properly citing the source.

What does Brooke County Schools Acceptable Use Policy Say About Copyright Violations and Plagiarism?
Students will not retrieve or send unethical, illegal, immoral, inappropriate or unacceptable information of any type.  Infractions of this nature will be subject to disciplinary action, including loss of computer privileges and possible suspension.

IMPORTANT LINKS FOR PARENTS:
            Learn what the law says about protecting your children’s rights online!
­     Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA)
­     Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA)
­     Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)

LEARN THE RULES ABOUT USING COPYRIGHTED MULTIMEDIA AND FAIR USE:
What is Creative Commons?
Creative Commons (CC) is a non-profit organization headquartered in San Francisco, California, United States devoted to expanding the range of creative works available for others to build upon legally and to share.  The organization has released several copyright-licenses known as Creative Commons licenses free of charge to the public. These licenses allow creators to communicate which rights they reserve, and which rights they waive for the benefit of recipients or other creators.
CreativeCommons.org provides links to sites that offer free or inexpensive downloads:
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