Ist 131-225 Ethics Writing Assignment

Ethics Writing Assignment

IST 131-225

Lilian Meienburg

February 17, 2017

        I am a programmer and I was hired by a local school district. The Superintendent of this school district has asked me to write a software program that will monitor online access and report online activities to the Superintendent. As an ethical programmer, I have to consider whether or not I should write the program. The Superintendent has not been given permission to monitor this information and feels that if people don’t know, it won’t hurt them.

        The main issue raised here is privacy on electronic networks. However, under the rules of the ECPA, monitoring employees is allowed. These rules allow employers to watch e-mail and network communications. Employers can also look through electronic files and monitor employees for speed and accuracy on repetitive tasks. There is also the privacy of the students to consider. Assuming this school district is providing the computers and tablets that they are requesting the software to monitor, the school has some legal obligation to know how these devices are being used by the student.

        Another issue that the Superintendent’s request raises, is that he doesn’t feel he needs to notify the employees and students. I think that he should notify them and have all students and employees sign a waiver that anything they do on any school issued computer or tablet is subject to monitoring. As a student, I remember a similar example of signing waivers in order to use the school’s computers and network. I feel they are very standard documents that the Superintendent could easily send out with paperwork at the beginning of each school year to every student. The waiver would be a required document that would have to be returned with the students’ other necessary paperwork. This waiver would layout the acceptable use policy for the School District’s computer network. An acceptable use policy is a guideline for how the network should be used.

        There are some laws that would come into play with this software request. As an ethical programmer, I need to make sure that I am not preventing these laws from being followed. The first laws would be privacy laws. The only part of the privacy laws that I feel would be at risk here would be the students and employees’ medical information, and the students’ school grades. To ensure these are kept private, I would make sure that the software requires a login and password to access. This would ensure that only school personal with proper clearance can view the online activity and access of the students and employees accessing the network. Another law to consider would be fraud and plagiarism laws. These laws ensure that people do not copy works from other people. Having the access to see what students are accessing would allow quicker checks for plagiarism.

        This software program that I am writing will also allow the Superintendent to view social media activity while on the school’s network or school issued devices. By monitoring the social media activity, it could help prevent cyberbullying and students or teachers breaking nuisance and harassment laws. Cyberbullying has become a huge concern in all school districts now. Students knowing their online activity is being monitored may in itself help alleviate some of these problems that are plaguing students today.

        Many school districts have begun issuing tablets to every student. These tablets are allowed to be taken home. This opens up the school district to being able to monitor the online activity that the student does off of the school’s campus, while using the school’s device. Ethically, the school has a responsibility to ensure that the devices are not being used illegally. In the article, “Student computer use raises privacy questions,” they discuss “cyber security agents,” that one school district hired specifically to monitor online student activity and watch for indications of sexting or cyberbullying.

        I am studying to be a psychologist. Although, I plan to go into private practice, there is the possibility that I could be a school psychologist. As a school psychologist, I would be on the school’s network and using the school’s computer. I would feel as an employee that my Superintendent has the right to view my access and my online activity. I would like to be notified that the school district is monitoring me, but even without notice, I would assume that they are monitoring me. In the world we live in, I feel that it is almost a given that we are being monitored by our employers or our schools.

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