This week we are pleased to welcome Marion County Deputy Prosecutor Kristen Martin to the Middle School for her Project CyberSafe presentations to 6th and 7th grade students and parents.
Cyber safety, and all it entails, has rapidly become one of the major challenges facing schools and their families, and Park Tudor is no exception. While I have been pleased by the small number of serious disciplinary infractions that we have faced this year, I have been taken aback by the fact that a majority of them have been cyber- or technology-related.
Clearly, it is incumbent on the school to redouble our efforts to educate students and families on the appropriate and safe use of technology, the internet and social media. To this end we will be adding further programming for all levels of the school on “cyber safe” practices and behaviors. We will also be providing training in MS and US advisory in areas of conflict resolution, peer relationships and communication. These ancillary areas are important given that they can form the origins of what becomes a cyber or social media problem.
Setting and maintaining appropriate boundaries is another topic that can be challenging to some young people and adults. This will also be a focus of our educational efforts moving forward. The virtual world erases some of the real-life markers and indicators that help us understand where boundaries are, and when we are in danger of crossing them. With careful thought, proper education and appropriate policies, we can minimize the risks that come from blurred boundaries. Our policy prohibiting texting between students and faculty is an important part of this effort.
In the coming days, I will be talking to both Middle and Upper School students about the issue of cyber safety and appropriate online behavior. I will be focusing on the core values that the school holds dear and that provide the foundation for our community.
Integrity, respect and responsibility are three of our five core values. All members of the Park Tudor community – students, faculty/staff, and parents - must commit to uphold these values to the very best of their abilities. These values do not disappear as we enter the digital realm. Integrity, respect and responsibility must guide our actions in all our virtual and actual interactions and relationships.
Given the serious nature of some online behaviors, it is critical that we recognize that a significant misjudgment online could have legal and educational ramifications that impact the trajectory of a young person’s life.
Our students’ virtual lives cannot operate by a set of rules and standards that conflict with our real-world values. I ask for your support in emphasizing to your children that Park Tudor’s core values of integrity, respect and responsibility should extend to all the areas of their lives.