Session 12: Ethics and Technology in the School

In this section:

Censorship
Copyright and Plagiarism
Fair Use
Software Piracy
Equity for Minorities and Women
Privacy
Acceptable Use Policies
Afterword

 

Censorship

America was built on the ideal of "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." One of the basic tenets of our constitution is freedom of speech. Throughout our history, however, special interest groups and the government have restricted these freedoms. Censorship occurs at many levels, including schools. Such classics as Ulysses, The Arabian Nights, and Tom Sawyer, have repeatedly gone on and off the banned book list, and the American Civil Liberties Union has often been at odds with school districts censoring these materials. Censorship is now reaching the electronic media. Concerns about both protecting people from offensive or inappropriate content and protecting the right to free speech are reaching new heights on the Internet.

As you probably know from news reports, major internet service providers have had problems with pedophiles using Internet chat rooms to lure unsuspecting youths. This is in part possible because chat room technology, where users communicate solely through typing, allows pedophiles to "pose" as a much younger person or a person of a different gender because of the absence of visual contact. The less dangerous but nonetheless offensive use of chat rooms to harass or insult people is also a problem. And within schools, care must be taken to ensure that students with email accounts do not use email to threaten or harass classmates.

Another concern is the large numbers of start-up businesses and amateur photographers that post explicit pornographic material on the World Wide Web. Although many sites require users to "register" as an adult before viewing the most graphic material, verifying a viewer's age is difficult and these registration systems are probably chiefly in place to protect the companies involved from liability. Many sites make soft-core or "blurred-out" pornography available to all viewers. Blanket regulatory efforts aimed at limiting access to pornographic content, such as the Communicat ions Decency Act, are unlikely to suceed, because of the difficulty in defining "obscene" content without reference to the context in which it is used. And the problem will persist regardless of U.S. laws, because the global nature of the Web allows sites in other countries with different regulations to be accessible.

Another problem is that various hate groups use the web as a soap box for their views and opinions. Many such groups have web sites containing racially biased, inflammatory, and otherwise offensive materials, with the potential to seriously offend and upset many students. Again, free speech laws protect the rights of such organizations despite the potential for harm to young internet users or members of target groups.

The questions regarding restriction of access to content are the same as they have been since the invention of the printing press: Who decides what is offensive? What should be prevented from viewing? >From publishing? What legal rulings establish precedent? Moreover, context is one of the prime determinants of decency. Web sites deemed unacceptable for children are permissible for adults, and a conversation that could be construed as inappropriate or indecent in a math class becomes necessary when teaching AIDS awareness. Obviously, there are no easy answers either morally or legislatively. As we found during the Communications Decency Act controversy, on the Internet it is difficult to limit content in order to protect some without unduly restricting the expression rights of others.

While the proponents of free speech are numerous, the potential for emotional damage and liability from exposure to inappropriate content is a major concern for technology coordinators in public schools. Two main counter-measures to the problems mentioned above have been developed. At the school level, Acceptable Use Policies govern student use of school resources for potentially immoral or offensive purposes. In the classroom, "filtering" software applications, such as Net Nanny and Surfwatch, provide some level of assurance that the policy rules are followed by students. These programs are capable of filtering out most inappropriate content from Internet sessions, and are currently being used by many school sites which allow student web access.

 

Copyright and Plagiarism

As technology has made it easier to access and reproduce art, literature, and intellectual property, the concerns about preserving copyright holders' rights in the age of the Internet have intensified. World Wide Web browsers make it simple for even neophyte computer users to download large amounts of text, images, music, and software code, and use them for their own purposes. The ease of access and reproduction means a potential increase in the occurence of plagiarism and copyright violations, an effect which is perhaps exacerbated by the cyberculture attitude of sharing open access to information. The technology that allows nearly universal access to information unfortunately provides opportunities for its theft and misuse.

Due to these problems, some authors and artists avoid publishing their work on the World Wide Web, while those involved in developing online content, including teachers and administrators, worry about the potential for unauthorized use of their work. To make matters worse, some web sites, such as the infamous "School Sucks", actually provide pre-written term papers and essays which students can download, print, and hand in.

Solutions to the problem of preserving copyright and avoiding plagiarism on the internet are being developed. The use of passwords to protect specific sites helps to prevent unwanted people from accessing specific sites. In schools, acceptable use policies are a main thrust of the solution, informing students of their responsibilities and providing protection for a school's potential liability. In addition, teachers can and should examine sites that provide pre-made schoolwork, and they should be aware of the material on these sites that is relevant to the classes they teach. Finally, some types of image processing software allow an electronic "watermark" to be added to images, providing a way for publishers to track down copyrighted images that have been stolen.

 

Fair Use

Does the previous section mean that teachers and school administrators cannot use any of the material they find on the Web? Not exactly. Tied closely to questions of copyright and plagerism is the idea of "fair use." Fair use is the legal principle that provides certain limitations on the exclusive rights of copyright holders. It is permissible, at times, for educators, students, and scholars to use portions of copyrighted works under fair use guidelines rather than by seeking authorization if the material is used for educational purposes. Fair use is not needed for works in the public domain (such as US Government works), for works in which the copyright has expired, or on works for which you have obtained permission for the particular use.

Although there is no easy test to identify if fair use is allowable, there are four factors which are considered in all instances. Simply stating that you were using the material for educational purposes is not enough (in fact, that's only one of the four factors). Also confounding the judgment of whether fair use can be considered is that fact that courts are continually redefining their interpretations of the law. Listed below are the four factors.

1. The purpose and character of use.
This is probably the most important criteria that will be considered during a lawsuit pertaining to copyright. The use of the work must be educational in nature. If it is also being sold at a profit, the courts will probably rule against you.

2. The nature of the copyrighted work.
Courts have ruled that authors have "first right" for publication. Therefore, any work which has not been published will not meet with favorable decisions by the court. This would pertain to historical or private works that have not been provided to the general public.

3. The amount of the work being used.
The material in question must be an excerpt or "portion" of the whole and not a "substantial" part of the work -- even a small portion could be substantial if it constitutes a central or critical part of the original work.

4. The effect of the use on the potential market value of the work.
What will be the "effect of the use of the work"? The Supreme Court has said that the use of the material in question cannot impair the marketability of the work. This factor is probably the most difficult to determine and the most controversial in a fair use analysis.

In general terms, if a teacher finds content that she wants to use 'only' in her class (such as a graphic), and the material is not going to be sold or go beyond her class, then there will probably not be a problem in incorporating the piece for her students. A problem does exist, however, if the piece in question is mounted on a Web page. In that case, it's not being used only in her class, but is available to anyone with access to the Internet. In that case, citing fair use will probably not hold up in court.

Probably the best way to get around the question of whether a piece is legal or not to use is to contact the author and receive written permission. Unfortunately, that's not always easy on the Internet, for the piece in question you locate may not be on the original author's page, but simply copied and pasted by someone not as prudent as yourself.

Software Piracy

One aspect of copyright infringement that is particularly relevant to technology leaders is software piracy--the unlawful duplication and use of computer programs. The ease with which applications on computer disks or CD-ROMs can be copied has made this problem widespread, and some "pirates" are even so bold as to make their illegal copies of software available for downloading online. The presence of pirated software on a school's PCs or network or the involvment of students, instructors, or staff in software piracy is a potential concern for schools, school districts, and technology coordinators.

Many solutions to the problem of piracy exist. Licensing agreements delimit individuals' use of duplicate copies of software applications, while site licenses accomplish the same function for institutions. Some pieces of software limit piracy by requiring access to the manual or use of the original CD-ROM the software was sold on. Many larger applications must be installed by a special installer program--this does not prevent piracy from the original CD-ROM, but it makes it difficult or impossible to simply duplicate the application and use it effectively. Finally, many software companies make piracy less inviting by providing limited demonstration and/or "freeware" versions of their products. The Software Publishers Association acts as a national watchdog group against piracy.

 

Equity for Minorities and Women

Another ethical question that should be addressed by technology leaders deals with the availability of access and equipment for all students. With the high cost of software and limited budgets of school districts, it sometimes happens that inequities in the amount and type of hardware and software in schools occur--this is often dependent on the wealth of the communities being served. Inner-city districts with high percentages of minority students and rural districts with smaller school budgets often fall behind on the technology front. It is crucial that no students be left out of the new nationwide emphasis on technology skills, one aspect of the well-known SCANS report, because such skills will continue to hold a high priority in the workplace for the foreseeable future.

Additional inequities exist along gender lines. Researchers report strong male dominance in school computing activities. Unconscious bias and social expectations may dampen interest in helping female students become computer-literate. In teacher-free activities, such as before- and after-school computer use, girls sometimes account for less than 30% of students. Gender inequities don't end once school is over. Gender biases at all levels of society, from sexist derogatory language in irc chat rooms to gender bias in the high technology workplace affect the role of women who use technology.

Solutions to these problems take a variety of forms. Educational centers that focus on training inner-city youths to use technology exist in many cities. Some government and private grants specifically target women or minorities for technology funding (such as the recent funding of $200 million Technology Literacy Challenge Grant). Programs such as Net Day encourage industry to provide internet access for schools that could not otherwise afford it. Furthermore, special interest groups provide a variety of types of support to women and minority students interested in computer technologies. Obviously, despite disparities, both women and minorities have attained high levels of success in science and technology and will continue to do so. The continued implementation of policies and practices that help to equalize distribution of technology and encourage its use by minorities and women will probably be an important issue for many years to come.

 

Privacy

Like censorship, public concerns about the issue of personal privacy have intensified in our age of information technology. The use of computer databases to keep information about income, credit history, medical records, and important personal data is commonplace, but the questions about who has authority to access these records and how they can legally be used have only begun to be answered. Email messages are not secure, and can easily be read by the system operators who run computer networks. Furthermore, files which are "trashed" or "recycled" on personal computer are usually recoverable in part or in full. Special "shredder" applications must be used to truly erase them consistently.

The Internet has added a new dimension to the privacy debate. Even when legal regulations about the use of information do exist, criminal hackers can often access even the most "secure" data if the computer containing the data is connected to the Internet. On the World Wide Web, information such as credit card numbers sent on unsecured web pages can be intercepted and recorded. Additionally, consumer information, however it is obtained, has become a valuable commodity to modern corporations. Records of individuals' web-browsing habits are sometimes recorded by marketing firms and used or sold without the knowledge of the Internet user. Finally, information about individuals and even photographs of them can be posted to the World Wide Web for public access without the individual's knowledge or consent.

As with the censorship issue, concerns about privacy pre-date computers and will probably continue to be debated far into the future. Many organizations have formed to promote privacy rights and inform citizens about how to protect their own personal data. In addition, legislation regarding the use/misuse of personal data continues to be worked on. And technology can be used to protect privacy as easily as it is used to invade it. Computer security technology has become an industry in its own right. As criminal hackers become more sophisticated, so do safeguards against them. "Firewalls" can be used to provide some protection against Internet snoops, while data encryption programs make it possible to protect information from all but the most powerful and sophisticated would-be decoders. "Secured" web pages are basically safe for commerical credit card use, since decoding the information sent to them, while technically possible, is simply not worth the trouble to theives. Despite the progress that has been made, at the very least educators and administrators have a responsibility to make it clear to students that their privacy as they use school resources such as PCs, email, and World Wide Web browsers is not guaranteed.

 

Acceptable Use Policies

Acceptable use policies (AUPs) are multi-purpose documents that identify school policy on a variety of issues, including those listed previously, as they relate to use of the computers and Internet access provided by the school. In addition to helping define what constitutes "acceptable" use of the technology, AUPs serve to limit schools' potential liability from misuse of its internet resources. Typically, AUPs inform students and parents of the limited educational purpose of school resources, and give examples of forbidden non-educational uses. These documents also detail the risks that come with the use of the technology and the limitations of filtering programs and adult supervision. Public school AUPs often include procedures and forms for obtaining necessary student or parental consent for use of a school's internet resources, and explicit statements detailing the procedures the school will follow if a student goes beyond that which is allowed.

An extensive summary of what AUPs often contain has been developed by Oregon technology consultant Nancy Willard. Online resource pages are also maintained by various agencies.

 

Afterword

Some fears concerning the Internet are well founded. However, it is also generally believed that by the end of this century, "knowledge workers" will make up one-third of the workforce. This "Age of Social Transformation" may have a more profound and permanent effect on our society than any political debate. Finding and applying knowledge may become the key competitive factor in the economy. Hopefully, schools will create informed, self-regulated learners whose ethical and strategic behaviors will guide both society and its technology.