Page 115 - Lakeland Catholic Technology Plan

13.5 Filtering
Much discussion has taken place in recent years regarding Internet filtering, or cen- sorship. Internet filtering is the process whereby material that is deemed inappro- priate for use within the school, is blocked before becoming available to
the students. Thus preventing access.
There are a number of ways of implementing this type of control. The most com- mon are by either installing an application on each computer, or setting up a proxy or central filter that filters the entire school system.
A filter setup on an individual computer requires a technician to manually install a program like CyberPatrol, or Surfwatch on each machine and in many cases, en- sure that the program is kept up -to-date. This is a cumbersome method as it in- creases the workload the already busy technicians have.
A filter setup at the head-end Internet feed, or on the main proxy server filters for the whole system, and there is only one place to keep up to date, and maintain.
Filtering will long be an argument after this document has decomposed, but some standards must be adopted by school boards. There is definitely an argument for proper supervision, but if we can do a simple thing once, and avoid all the unnec- essary supervision, it will not take long to realize the benefits of the costs saved.
Recommendations:
1. The issue of filtering objectionable or inappropriate content fromthe Internet
should be seriously considered by the District in the near future.
2. If filtering is deemed necessary, it should be done at the proxy server, or District level to avoid the frequent updates required on individual workstations.
13.6 Electronic Mail (E-mail)
We live in a world where instant communication is almost a necessity. It has become increasingly important to save costs in sending paper memos, and to ac- curately present information in a timely manner. That said, E-Mail has become the life-blood of many organizations, having the net effect of pulling the organization closer together, and providing a bond of information between all staff members.
In virtually every organization, that utilizes technology, every staff member has E-Mail, and everyone is capable of sending everyone else a message. In schools this allows Principals to get timely and private information to all staff quickly. In school districts this allows Senior Administration, and various schools to collabo- rate much more closely in every activity. In school systems this allows teachers to have better communication with the outside world, including resources, other teachers in other countries, students and parents.
E-Mail should have several important characteristics. It should be:easy to use; •standardized across an organization;
•allow a single mailbox to be used for internal and external mail;
•provide mailing list capabilities so that group mailing lists can be easily setup; and
•accessible from anywhere in the organization, or anywhere outside the organiza- tion.
At the time of the site visits, the District did not have an e-mail system in place. One has been promised, and on the go for many months, but was still not operat- ing. The District is attempting to put an Exchange E-Mail server in each town to facilitate communication. However, these efforts have been placed at a low priority.
In our opinion, next to the Wide Area Network, E-Mail should be the highest prior- ity. The benefits can be seen almost immediately, and the cost savings in distribut- ing paper, and the time saved in getting information out to schools and between schools is immeasurable.
One school, the Assumption Jr/Sr High School, has had an internal e-mail system for quite some time, and this has served well, but the time has come to implement a District-wide e-mail system, and provide e-mail for all staff members. Recommendation:
1. Make E-Mail the highest priority of the technical staff.
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