Thank you for all of the excellent input! Below is my original question, followed
by the wonderful responses.
Susan McCaffrey, Library Media Specialist and District Coordinator
East Grand Rapids Public Schools
East Grand Rapids, MI
smccaffr@egrps.org
Question:
I am the new media specialist at a high school that has two 1-hour lunch periods.
It is an open campus, so many of the nearly 1000 students leave for lunch, but
there are still many who stay around. Although the media center is also scheduled
with classes during lunch, there are enough other students who come in and
sometimes the atmosphere gets very, uh, unacademic. Although the student handbook
states that computers are for "educational purposes only", this has not been
enforced and there is a lot of game-playing, emailing, blogging, chatroom, etc.
>>I am interested in learning how other schools handle this, especially if you have
>long lunch periods. If you do not allow games, how is it enforced and what are
>the consequences for students who ignore it? If you DO allow games, how do you
>not allow it to get out of hand? I have received my principal's complete support
>in making the media center a no-game area, but how can I achieve this without
>being the "mean librarian"?
*------------------------------------
Responses:
We have many game sites blocked via our filter, all games that come withthe
computers are deleted, and students if caught are given one warning.After that
their computer privileges are denied for 9 weeks (if theyhave a computer class they
automatically fail). This comes down fromadministration as befits our board policy
and the enforcer rarely had aproblem. All this was spelled out in the handbook
students and parentsmust sign, is covered on morning announcements, and at class
meetings. -------------------------------------------------------------Our district
policy is that the school computers are to be used for schoolrelated work only. I
introduce this in my 9th grade orientation andreinforce it constantly for the first
few weeks. In the orientation I explain that learning this concept (school
computers =school work only) is really a job skills. Once you get out in the
workingworld, your employers is going to expect you to be WORKING on
theircomputers, not playing, and such behavior may get you fired in the realworld.
Here in library land - I just boot them off the computer and make a reallynoisy
big deal about it. Funny, I only have to do this act a couple oftimes for the
behavior to extinguish itself. I also have the "Schoolrelated work only - no
games, chat email or IM" posted on all the computersand on several bulletin boards
so that if I get a new student who hasn'tgotten the orientation pitch I can gently
point it out to them. If we have repeat offended they get a discipline referral and
I usuallysuggest a period of time that they are not allowed to be on any
schoolcomputer as a punishment. Admin has been terrific in backing me up on this!
Having rules doesn't make you a mean librarian! You post them andconsistently
enforce them. You could create a handout for students as theycome in to make sure
they know what is expected of them. You can limit thenumber of students who come
in at lunch that are not with a class. You canprohibit non-class students from
using the computers at all. That way, youwon't have to monitor to make sure they
are not playing games. If theydon't follow the rules, they lose their internet
privileges in the library,period. The time frame for loss of priviledges would be
up to you, but Iwould make it at least one grading period or even a semester.
Studentssending e-mail and blogging could put your school in lawsuit land due
tocontent, etc. That might be something you want to talk to your principalabout.
Does your district have a District Internet Usage Policy? If not,it should. That
way, you're just following the rules, yourself. You can provide them with chess and
checkers sets. I find them at dollarstores for2 or 3 dollars. I have an ongoing
puzzle, 500-1000 pieces thatstudents like to work on. They can read magazines and
of course, books! If you don't set some boundaries, you won't like your job and
you'll gonuts, in my opinion! Just set reasonable rules and enforce
themefficiently. You don't have to be mean about it. And DON'T give themsecond
chances. They will look upon that as being "manipulatable" and youdon't want that.
You can do your job well, have students like you, andstill have rules. Every
student is not going to like you, that's just howit is. Choose your battles. :)
Our school has gone to NO games, NO e-mail, NO instant messaging, NO cell phones.
Too many problems with bullies and other things happening during the day. First
offense is 2 hours detention. Second offense is Saturday
School.---------------------------------------------------- One step is to get the
online sites blocked and the games included on the computers removed. That makes
gaming a little more difficult. Our policy is a responsible use policy...violation
of it results in the removal of computer priviledges for 20 school days. The
second violation is a 60 school day loss and the third, loss for the remainder of
the school year.
We don't allow games. We have filters that block game sites. If achild bypasses
the filtering, I just ask them to log off. There ishardly any problem here once
word spreads that it's not allowed. Goodluck!
Susan - Our computers blcok student e-mail during the day. Whether or not you
would want to block game sites.....
I had this same situation in my previous school. I told the kids that the
computers were available only for students doing homework. If they are playing
games they are taking up space for someone who NEEDS to work. It still takes a lot
of supervision, but if I asked them more than once they couldn't come back for two
weeks. If you need a way to keep track of who was at which machine you could have
them sign up as they come in, e.g. Computer #1- Frank L. I knew of a school that
required the student put his/her ID card on the monitor. If they're goofing around
you can walk by and take it then they have to pick it up from an administrator. You
could make two older model machine available for email, that way kids have a place
to check their mail.
We have a filtering system on our district servers that filter outthings like
games, e-mailing, chatrooms, etc. It is not allowed on anyschool computer.
Occasionally, we have students that get around thefilter, but they are usually
caught.
Our district wide acceptable use policy for technology states that there isno
personal email, no non-educational games, no chat rooms, etc. These sitesare
actually blocked by our filter. We have 983 students and two lunchperiods. Students
are encouraged to come into the library at their lunchtime to read, study, or they
can get on a computer. Classes have first priority and I tell that to the freshmen
each year atorientation. If they cannot be quiet and respect those other classes
inhere, they are asked to leave. Classes have first option at computers, too.I tell
them that this is a place to study, to read, to learn and that iswhat has the
priority in the library. If computers are not busy, they are welcome to use them.
If I see studentson a game site, they are reminded of the district policy towards
games (iteats our bandwidth and knocks some of our other campuses off their
computeruse). I then go into the history of that computer after the student
leaves,get the website and send it to our technology people to block the site.
Mostall outside email sites are already blocked. Students must come to the
circulation desk to 'check out a computer.' Wegive them a small card that we have
laminated with the computer number and abarcode. They Velcro the card to the
computer. We know it is in use if thatstudent leaves to find a book, get a pen or
pencil, pick up a print job,etc. and can't just be 'taken' by another student. We
have 25 computers for student use.
On days when I don't have a class in the library students can come in to the
library as long as they come at the beginning of their lunch period and don't leave
till it ends. If I have a class I put up a red flag that says closed and they know
they can't come in without a pass from me or from my assistant. If they want to be
sure to come to the library during their lunch time, they need to come to see me or
my assistant either before school or the day before and get a pass. That way I can
discuss with them what they plan to do in the library. This way I can screen out
students who are likely to chat or cause any disruption to my class. If I need
computers for my class that period, I will warn them that while they can come in,
they can't use the computers. The pass entitles them to come into the library at
any time during their lunch period and they can leave before their lunchtime is
over. It might be good if your school, or school system had a policy about what is
and is not allowed. We have ours on a handout that must be signed by students and
their parents if they want to use computers in the school. Personally I don't have
any problem with them playing games or looking at fun sites as long as the sites
are not pornographic or violent. Our school system's policy is that they can't use
email unless it is for school purposes. Our school system has a fire wall that
blocks out instant messaging. I also tell them to close down the Live Journal and
blogging sites if I see them. Hope this helps.
While I don't have the long lunch hour that you do, the students in this
schoolstill try the same things -- games, chatrooms, etc. Our school uses
"Vision"software, a package put out by Alteres, I think, that allows you to see
what ison an individual computer screen. I can see addresses but can't see the
wholescreen unless I purposefully click on it. I have options if I see someone on
agame or chatroom or whatever -- I can blank out his/her screen, turn thecomputer
all the way off, take over the screen, etc. This has proven veryeffective. The word
will get out very quickly that you're serious about theschool-use-only rule and
students will find other things to do. You'll alwayshave a few -- I've been here 3
years with laptops, had the same rules for allthat time and still had to shut down
several kids today. I don't spend a lot oftime monitoring them, but the fact that
it's a possibility is enough for somestudents.
Our policy is:No GamesNo EmailNo ChatroomsNo Downloading of ProgramsNo Internet
MusicEducational Use Only We have these notices posted in the library and
throughout the school. Students lose computer privileges when these rules are not
obeyed.
I'm afraid no matter what you do, you'll be the "mean librarian." I'm alibrary
media specialist at the middle school level (600 students each).We are really
strict at the two schools where I work. The kids aregiven one warning to get off
the games, email, etc. The next time theyuse the computers for fun and games, they
are off the computers totallyfor a month. If it happens again, it is the entire
year. We are luckythat in one school the consequence pertains to all the computers
in theentire building. At the other school, it is only the computers in thelibrary
/ computer labs. It all depends on your administration. If the AUP specifically
states how the computers are to be used and howthey are not, the students need to
follow that. Check to see if thereis any consequence written into that statement.
If so, use that asadded ammunition if there is a complaint. Hope this helps a bit.
----------------------------------------- In order to enforce the education only
use of computers, our school has the following policy--students may use the
computers in the library only if they have a pass written by the teacher who
assigned the research/paper/etc. Study hall teachers may not send students to
"use" the computers. The only way a student gets on a computer is if they have it
in writing that they have an actual assignment. If a student comes into the
library and is not working on the assignment, he/she is sent immediately to
wherever he/she came from and the teacher who wrote the pass is notified that the
student obviously didn't need time in the library to complete the assignment.
Question: Are you worried about being the "mean" librarian? If so, I believe that
you'll have a problem with students being "unacademic" in the library. If you
don't say what you mean and mean what you say, the kids will figure that out in
about two minutes and try to push you around forever. You can enforce rules
without being mean.
Hi, I have been a very techie Librarian for over 20 years. I had
computers in the Library with email back when it was both DOS through DELPHI (and
Knowledge Network for databases) to those funky late 80's Prodigy and AOL Programs
through all the various windows formats. Back in the early 1990's I did allow
limited email until the school put through a technology policy which it sounds is
similar to yours. It states computers are to be used for EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES and
until last year stated NO EMAIL or CHAT. So, even when I had a network
of NON-INTERNET Computers (since 1993, utilizing CD Server with all sorts of
Informational CDs) and had on the side two Telephone Internet PCs, I had to
establish rules. I told all the students that with our H.S. of 1200 to 1300
students, and with our long lunch waves (we have block scheduling so we let
students come in for up to 1 hour), there are a lot of students who need to do
academic work. So, first Classes get priority. Then if there are no classes, then
students may use the computers for word processing, powerpoint, computer art
projects or other appropriate uses including research but they must sign in (I ask
them to sign a computer sign in sheet and have a column for subject of internet
research or use). I can then use the sign in to document computer use/traffic and
use the subjects to know what sort of databases or subjects are the heavier users
of the computers. I have told the students having the sign in sheets allows me to
justify the Computers in my budget requests for upgrades and for supplies and for
online database purchases. ALSO, I tell them that even though it is
THEIR LUNCH, it is still the ACADEMIC DAY for the rest of the school including the
Library Media Center. And since the school computers are for Educational Use, then
during the academic day, the computers will only be used for academics. Our school
Library is open from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., but our Academic school day starts at 7:27
and ends at 1:54, so, before or after the academic day is the ONLY TIME the
computers may be used for any games. And as for the email, no email is allowed
unless it is for an academic purpose (such as requesting information, a specific
teacher project requiring email such as french or spanish or german pen pals,
emailing their information between home and school to print out at school or to a
teacher's mailbox, or college applications) AND THEY MUST LET THE LIBRARY STAFF
KNOW BEFORE THEY OPEN and USE ANY EMAIL, that they need to do it for the specific
academic reason. Most students accept this without a problem. Those
that have had problems with this, then, after one or two warnings, they lose their
PRIVILEGE of BEING IN THE LIBRARY or LIBRARY COMPUTER AREA (initially or 1st
offense is 2 weeks or 10 academic days, 2nd offense is 3 weeks or 15 academic days,
3rd offense is 4 weeks or 20 academic days, 4th offense is for the remainder of the
semester or school year). Also until last year, our internet policy specified NO
EMAIL, so we had to turn their names over to the Computer Coordinator who cut off
their internet access through their network login. (Each student has a unique
login on our school intranet). This year, they softened up that to say "no
inappropriate communications". I have also worked with counselors and
parents when their have been problems. I found some of our Minority students from
other countries tended to ignore our directives, sometimes "playing the 'I no
understand' card" which our ESL teacher later helped determine was just a game with
some of the students. Especially when it came to CHAT, which is a definite no-no.
(I caught one of our Pakistani students instant messaging with 4 or 5 people from
who knows where in her own language. She denied that she was, trying to shrink the
windows and thinking I wouldn't know.) Our district has the policy against
the PERSONAL EMAIL AND CHAT for safety and security reasons. Liability of school
for teens who might inadvertantly communicate with someone who might do them harm
is a definite reason why our school does not allow these. I explain to the
students, if they question it, that our school district has the rule against
PERSONAL EMAIL in order to protect them and for their own safety that they should
only do email from their home computers and with their parents permission (We know
half of these kids don't have adult supervison on their home computer use, but that
is the parents responsibility.). We have had complete support of the
administration (and I have had 6 principles and 4 assistant principles in the past
6 years and all have been very supportive in the name of safety and liability).
Good luck. And while you may think about you as a mean Librarian, don't
worry about it. At least they will know you care for their safety. And it is
amazing what they will say about you 10 years down the road. For example, 10-12
years ago, some students nick-named me "Conan the Librarian" (it was common
knowledge among the students at our school which at the time was between 1100 and
1200 students. I even had "behavior contracts" that I created with two or three
students per year in order for them to be able to come to the Library after their
3rd or 4th time being kicked out for behavior problems. One of those students,
actually, he was my first WRITTEN BEHAVIOR CONTRACT student who graduated in 1995,
came back to visit, he had the biggest chip on his shoulder when he was here. He
now said that I was one of the few teachers who didn't let him get away with things
and made him accountable and he realizes that is why he is where he is now (making
6 figures and owning time shares and doing extremely well). Then this summer,
while I was at a training workshop for CAPTURING KIDS HEARTS with about 6 other
schools, one of the other teachers who is in his late 20s, said he went to college
with a bunch of kids from Rockville HS. The next day he came in and said he had
called them and asked them about their librarian and they told him that I was
"COOL!". So, even though I was tough, they now view it very differently.
I am at a middle school and our lunch time is 48 minutes. I am a single staff
person, our library max. for the size of the room is 75 but since I manage the
library alone I close the doors at between 34 to 45 students. Students on the
computers must be doing school related work. We have a monitoring program called
NetOP and have the ability to see what students are doing on the computes from my
desk computer at the check-out desk. Keyboards can be locked when students are
using the computers for inappropriate work per our library guidelines. I then ask
student to get up from the computer at the time. Each student has their own
USERNAME & PASSWORD. If they share that, I can LOG OFF both students and they are
asked to get up from the computer. I explain the rules and let them know that if
they can not follow the rules they risk the possibality of losing their computer
privilages in the library.
We had all the games taken off the computers (the games that come withthe
computer) and many of the game sites are blocked. When I see astudent playing a
game on the computer I tell them that they need toclose it down. I also have a
"Computer Rules" beside each computer. Save your documents on the
M drive Classes have priority at the computers No
game playing. No chatrooms. No downloading.
No headsets plugged into the computer. No on-line radio
stations. No food or open cans of beverages on the computer tables.
This year there is no pop allowed in the school. Students are allowedto drink
water in the classrooms, as long as it was purchased here atthe school. The water
bottle has the school name and address on it. Because we are a small school and
only have 1/2 hour lunches and many ofour students are 1/2 day students, they go
back to their home school fortheir academic classes I don't have that many students
coming to thelibrary during the lunch time. They are told that they are to be
quiet,abide by the rules. If the students get a little loud they are asked
toleave. I tell them I'll see them tomorrow or in some cases on Monday. I would
also have other games for them: Chess, Boggle (I put craft felton the in-side of
the cover to deaden the noise), Scrabble to name afew. I've also put out jig saw
puzzles. When I find a good deal on puzzles Ipurchase two, usually the 500 piece
ones, so that if someone would takea piece I have a back-up puzzle.
------------------------------------------------Our high school has a no game
policy for computers in school too. They are academic resources, and in limited
supply. Band width is used up by these games and things slow down a lot when the
high graphic games are used. Reminding kids that they are in an academic building
and that the materials purchased by your school district are there to further
their education does not make you the mean librarian. It makes you concerned
about their education and the access of all children to information they need to
further there education in a timely manner. IE: enforce the no game rule and get
over being popular.
Our computers are all networked and filtered. Computer games, chatting, e-mail
(like hotmail), blogging are pretty much filtered and blocked by the server. Every
once in a while things will slip through, but more often than not those items are
blocked. Our kids and their parents also have to sign a computer access permission
form that makes it clear that non-academic uses of the computer could result in
loss of computer privileges. I don't think you would be out of line by enforcing
rules against chatting, games, etc. I tend to be more lenient with computer usage
at lunch, but I still tell kids they have to abide by policy and they can lose
their network privileges.
--------------------------------------------------------------I am also at a high
school although we do not have as long a lunch as you.We do not allow games during
school hours. We do a freshman orientation tothe media center and go over computer
usage with all freshmen, so they knowfrom the beginning that games are not allowed.
However, there will alwaysbe students who come in, sit down, and start playing a
game. We usuallyjust remind the student that games are not allowed. We are not
quiet aboutit, we will just announce out loud "Remember, No games." That serves as
areminder to everyone. After school, we don't worry about it unless we
havestudents who need to work and can't get to a computer. In the morning it'snot
a problem because the students who have work to do get there early andhave all the
computers. I don't think you will be seen as the mean mediaspecialist if you keep
your tone friendly. You can also ask your teachersto remind students. If you have
a morning report or announcements, put itthere also. Before long the message will
get out and you will just have toremind the "forgetful" student.
I sympathesize with your dilemma. Our students have 40 minute lunch and class
periods. It is very easy within this short amount of time to do whatever the
students want to on the computer. The Internet is a wonderful technological tool,
but can get out of hand. It is also not easy to be a nice librarian while enforcing
the rules. I do have an additional teacher who is technically watching the study
students, but, they do not really watch as I would to restrict the computer games.
My district has a no game policy as well. I have worked hard to enforce this
policy, but it does take some policing of the students. I have 20 computers which
are used first for classes, next for study and lunch students. Over the years, the
policy of no game playing was not strictly enforced, but when I took over as Media
Specialist, I made it my mission to begin to have the students use the computers
for other purposes. First, I have the students sign in to use a computer and
reminded the students that they had to use the computer for school assignments or
research. But, then, how do you stop them from reading an online newspaper for
sports or checking on the scores? That became permissible because there is an
advantage to have the students "read." If they do email, they are supposed to use
it to open assignments that they have emailed to themselves. But, truthfully, this,
too, is one of those issues that I allow just to avoid the games. Second, I typed
up the library polic y for students which includes acceptable behavior and computer
use. The students sign it and are told to be sure they will comply with the rules
and regulations. This way, it is no surprise when they are told not to watch videos
or play games. To date, this has worked very well. I do tire of those needless and
nasty conversations with students who did not know the rules. Today, I had one
student listening to music which they are not to do and another who was watching a
video. Neither student was nasty when I reminded them of the rules. If a student
misuses the computer, they will be asked to leave the computer and will not be
allowed to use it for one week, then on the second offense, two weeks, and on the
third offense, they will be asked to stay out of the library for a month. These
regulations could be constructed to fit your situation. I have to admit, last year,
I begin to feel too much like a police. I had a trial to NetOp which allowed me to
view everyone's computer on mine and I could see who was playing games or which
sites the students went to. I became too stressed during this period and took on a
different strategy this year. Our district couldn't afford NetOp at this time
anyway. At research times, too many students truly need computers to do their
assignments and I would ask a student who was just surfing the net to leave and
allow the other students to use the computer. It is possible to maintain an
academic atmosphere in the library. I am in favor of creating a space for students
who need to study. Good luck in your mission!Barbara
This year I have tried again, thinking maybe they learned their lesson from
having the games eliminated. Starting tomorrow there is again no games. It is
just too much hassle. The students do not get that they are being given a
privilege to be allowed to play any games. I am tired of the arguing and pushing
the limit of playing other than approved games. You just need to post signs around
the computers that NO games are allowed. Our district filters the web hosting
sites like earthlink and hotmail so students can't access their email at school.
Blogging and chatrooms can get through the filter, but I have not had too much
trouble with these. My consequence if a student is using the computers
inappropriately is one week suspension from the computers. I have to catch them at
it, and they can be very sneaky, but it usually only takes one or two oblivious
students who don't realize I am near and get suspended to teach all not to push me.
If they are caught again they get a referral because it then becomes
insubordination and that is a bigger issue that the deans want to deal with. Just
be consistent and the students will adjust.
My high school does not have long lunch periods, they are 45 minuteslong,
though. We have approximately 2275 students at the school. The libraryis open to
most any student during the day but we do make students who havea study (freshman
and sophomores) have a pass to be in the library. Withthat said, I also have 28
computers in the library. Our school district hasa pretty strict acceptable use
policy that states the computers are only tobe used for academic purposes. If we
see a student playing a game on acomputer, we ask the student to stop. If the
student is cooperative, wedon't do anything more. Most of the time this is all it
takes. Sometimes,though, they are habitual computer game players. Then we make them
get offthe computer. If they really push it with us, we give their name to
theirassistant principal and they can get detention. We also have had to
tellstudents they cannot use a computer in the library. That happens veryrarely,
though. Also, our AUP doesn't allow students to do email; in fact,the computers
have most all email programs blocked.
We are a middle school, however, last year's game playing and foolingaround with
computer setting, IM-ing, etc. got out of hand as well. Thelocal private high
school that we feed into used a computer monitoringprogram called "Vision" by
Altiris, which we just installed earlier thismonth. It displays all the computer
screens at the circulation desk.At library orientation, I explained to everyone
that (just like theadults working at the school), they should not assume that they
had anyprivacy when using school computers, especially in the library, and thatthe
library computers were for school work only. Amen. I told themthat the appearance
of any games, Instant Messaging windows, etc. ontheir screens would cause their
computer to shut down (we control itfrom the desk). I also reminded them that we
have plenty of theirparents volunteering so personal, non-school related messages
mightembarrass them as well as their parents, or other students' parents....It
works fairly well. There are always those who must push theenvelope, however. Now
I don't feel that I have to sneak up behind themand catch them in the act. It's
the policy that shuts them down, not"mean" me. Good luck.
Hi, I allow my students to do whatever they like during lunch, before school
andafter school. It is their free time and I think these other computer
activitiescan be educational and beneficial for them too. They play the games and
dothese activities quietly. I would not want to have to monitor all the sites
and"ride" the students about it. During the rest of the day or when there is
astudent waiting to use a computer for a school assignment this takes priorityover
games & e-mail.
I'm a solo librarian at a 9 - 12 high school. How many responsible adults that
can apply consequencesare with you during lunch? My take is - to enforce no
gaming,someone needs to assume the "bad cop" role till the behavior changes.I
thinks students will go along with the changes as long asthere is no way around it
- and as long as the rules areuniformly enforced. You're going to be a mean
librarian for a while no matterwhat you do. As long as your boss will back you
up,try something (detentions, after a first warning, for example).
We also have a "educational use only policy" and do not allow games, e-mail,
chats, blogging. When they grump about game playing, etc. I usually respond with
"Our computers aren't the newest or the fastest and we need to make sure that they
are only being used for school purposes." In the past, during lunch, we would be
inundated with students looking for a place to "hang out" until we instituted the
following policy: Students must now have a pass from an administrator to use the
media center at lunch and they need to be doing schoolwork or checking out a book.
Our administrators monitor the lunchroom and commons area during lunch and are easy
to find. They know that they need to ask the students their purpose for using the
media center. This means that every student in the media center comes in with a
pass and something I can hold them accountable for. When they grump at me, I
usually respond with "I need to know who's in here at any one time" or "I need to
know who's here from a class and who's here from lunch". It took a little training
for my administrators but now they are on board with me and it's been nice.
Sometimes I do feel like a "meanie" for sending students to get a pass when they
say they just need to print something but it's a slippery slope and I found it
easiest to just require it for everyone. At first I thought a teacher pass might
suffice, but teachers were writing passes without questioning the students or
writing "permanent" passes which just led to trouble. This might not work for you
but thought I'd share my situation. -----------------------------------------We
filter games and do not allow student email. As far as students inthe library
during lunch, I found that unless a student came in with aspecific assignment,
their purpose was "social" in nature. To that end,I require a pass from the
teacher assigning the work for a student tocome to the library during their lunch
period.
I don't do the lunch thing at my school, but I have study hall students who come
in to use the library, which basically still means "free" time for them. I do not
allow games on my computers. My feeling is that if I allowed games, that is all
that would happen, and I would be an arcade room supervisor, not a librarian. I
don't think the district wants to pay my salary for that. I have posted on each
computer no games. It is also in the student handbook, along with all the other
library rules. Students are responsible for what is in the handbook, they sign for
it at registration. That signature covers the "I didn't know" excuse. Another
thing I think about. I'm not sure the taxpayers of my district would be very happy
if they knew their hard earned taxes were being used to play computer games. If
your principal is behind you, set the policy, post it, give general announcements,
and then hand out detentions or whatever you do. Or you could set a policy of
having to have "parental permission" to play games, and send a signature form home.
That would probably get some people upset, and then they would make the board set
a policy. Good luck.------------------------------------------------ Our server is
set up to block most game sites and chatrooms. This makes it very easy for me.
I had a similar situation when I first started a few years ago. What has helped
has been a school wide (and this year, a district wide) policy of uniform rules -
no computer games anywhere - in the library, computer lab, writing lab etc. and we
enforce it by simply keeping on it. A list of rules are posted in each classroom
and in the library - if a student violates these rules, they are shown the written
rules that are posted - a reminder. If the violation continues they are asked to
sign an accountability book and then the AP speaks with them. There are levels of
severity depending on how resistent the student is to stopping the behavior. Each
year it gets better. If it's a school wide policy, you are not being singled out as
the "mean" librarian because the kids understand that these are the rules of the
school.
We only allow our students to use the computers for their schoolwork. Students
that are caught doing other things, get one warning. After that they lose their
computer privileges for a certain length of time.We do not have an open campus at
lunch. So in your case, perhaps you can insist that students still sign in with
their names and what they will be working on. If it is not school related, they
need to go elsewhere.
In our Student planner as part of the rules, Games,
emailing,chatrooms and blogging are not allowed.
Any site with games, chatrooms, email capability are bllcked by our filter.
Everyone knows it and the staff supports it. Any student
caught playing games is restricted from the library for 2 weeks (we are on a 4
block ABCD schedule - so it is really only one week). They can come with their
teacher in a class and with a research pass from a teacher to do work.
We have School center which many
of the teachers use for their webpages. Several have links to games.
This year I'm asking the teachers to give me educ game ites that
I would like to have in a folder on the desktop of the library computers and get
the sites unblocked.
Do your students sign an acceptable use policy for the computers? Allof our
students are required to sign one and it states that computersare to be used for
academic purposes only. The consequences of playinggames, e-mailing, etc. is that
the student is not allowed to access thecomputers at school any longer. This is
one way to solve this problemwithout becoming "the mean librarian." "This is a
school policy, not alibrary policy" and "it's not up to me; it was the school board
whodecided on the policy" are two ways I explain it without being the badguy.
---------------------------------- The key word that our students understand is
"zero tolerance" When I catch them doing something not permitted, I merely utter:
We have a Zero Tolerance policy and ask them to leave the Media Center for the day.
If it is a repeater, I extend it for the week. They catch on quickly
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