Agreements

The purpose of providing access to technology
ASL provides access to technology for educational purposes that support the school’s mission, curriculum, and instructional goals. Personal technology devices are bound by these rules whenever they are used on campus. Students are expected to use good judgment when working in areas not covered explicitly by the rules.

Equipment

• Do not eat or drink near computer equipment.
• Do not damage, disable, or otherwise harm the operation of school computers or the network. This includes attempting to gain administrative access to computers.
• Do not waste resources, particularly printer toner and paper.
• Applications and the macOS are managed by ASL; when notified of an available update, users should do so in a timely manner.
• Playing games, messaging, accessing social networking sites, and watching entertainment videos are not allowed during the school day unless associated with a class and permission is given by a teacher.
• ASL uses various web filtering and content monitoring platforms to scan students' school files and communications on G Suite as well as their internet activity for signs of serious issues.

Mobile Phones and Personal Technology

• Smartphones and smartwatches are not permitted to be brought to campus.
• Non-internet-enabled phones brought to school must remain in students’ lockers during the school day unless a teacher gives you specific permission to use them for educational purposes.
• Only make calls outside of school hours, and only on non-internet-enabled personal phones.
• During school hours, use technology (computers, headphones, cameras, etc.) for educational purposes only and only with teacher permission.
• Ask your parents/guardians to contact the MS Office or Grade Level Aide if they would like to get a message to you during school hours.

Safety and privacy

• Technology is not to be used for bullying, labeling, harassment or hurtful behavior.
• Do not share your password with anyone other than your parents / guardians.
• Do not access password-protected accounts of other people, even if they have inadvertently left their accounts open.
• Ask permission before recording someone (audio, video, or still images). 
• Before posting photos or videos online that include other people, students must ask permission from those people.

Internet

• Do not use the Internet to view, download, send, or print materials which are unlawful, obscene, or abusive.
• Respect the work and ownership rights of people inside and outside of the school. This includes abiding by copyright laws on music, videos, software, and intellectual materials.
• Only use generative AI tools within the guidelines set forth in each class. When in doubt, check with your teacher. 

Email

• Proper etiquette should always be followed: always include a subject, use a salutation, write in complete sentences, and check spelling before sending.
• Junk mail or chain letters should not be forwarded.

Non-compliance with this Responsible Use Agreement is a serious breach of trust within the ASL community and will be treated as a disciplinary matter. 

Last updated: August 2024

These documents are for those students who will be taking home their school laptop each evening. The documents are pdfs. If you click one of the links, the document should load in your web browser in a new tab or window. If you would prefer to download the files to your computer instead, right-click or ctrl-click each link to bring up a contextual menu that will allow you to download the file.

Middle School Laptop Computer Use Agreement (updated for the 2024-25 school year)
Middle School Standards for Proper Laptop Care (updated for the 2024-25 school year)
Middle School Laptop Use Acknowledgement Form (updated for the 2024-25 school year)

In the Middle School we monitor student use of computers and insist that computers are used for school purposes - generally academic work that has been assigned by teachers. All students are required to sign a page in the Student Handbook that includes the Responsible Use Policy for the middle school; this document outlines our expectations for student use of school and personal technology.

The Middle School also offers the following guidelines to parents for the supervision of computer use at home (excerpted from a document produced by Lawrence J. Magid, syndicated columnist for the Los Angeles Times, author of The Little PC Book [Peachpit Press]):

Cyberspace, the Web, the Net, or the Information Highway. Whatever it’s called, millions of people are going online to exchange electronic messages, surf the World Wide Web, and participate in chat groups and many other online activities. A bewildering amount of information, in many forms, is available. What can parents do to ensure their children have positive online experiences?

6 Rules for On-Line Safety

1. I will not give out personal information such as my address, telephone number, parents’ work address/telephone number, or the name and location of my school without my parents’ permission.
2. I will tell my parents right away if I come across any information that makes me feel uncomfortable.
3. I will never agree to get together with someone I "meet" online without first checking with my parents. If my parents agree to the meeting, I will be sure that it is in a public place and bring my mother or father along.
4. I will never send a person my picture or anything else without first checking with my parents.
5. I will not respond to any messages that are mean or in any way make me feel uncomfortable. It is not my fault if I get a message like that. If I do, I will tell my parents right away so that they can help me to to block and/or report the content.
6. I will talk with my parents so that we can set up rules for going online. We will decide upon the time of day that I can be online, the length of time I can be online, and appropriate areas for me to visit. I will not access other areas or break these rules without their permission. 

At the very least, keep track of any files your children download to the computer, consider sharing a personal email account with your children to oversee their mail, and consider joining your children when they create social media accounts. The best way to assure that your children are having positive online experiences is to stay in touch with what they are doing.