State and Federal laws requires digital service providers to furnish minors with specific data protections, curbing access to harmful content, and empowering caregivers with tools to manage their child's digital engagement. Furthermore, it stipulates school districts adhere to standards set by the Texas Education Agency (TEA) concerning devices and apps provided to students. Below you can view the safety measures Montgomery ISD implements.
Bark+ For Schools
Bark for Schools+ is installed as an extension of Outlook, Google Drive, and Microsoft 365 for all students. It is a content monitoring tool that leverages powerful artificial intelligence technology to help detect potentially dangerous or inappropriate situations that students may be facing both in and out of school.
If potential digital concerns arise on school-issued accounts during the school day, Bark for Schools+ sends designated school representatives specialized alerts to ensure they can address the situation in a timely manner. If a potential concern occurs outside the school day, Bark can send the guardian an alert. These alerts serve a dual purpose by addressing the specific situation and providing valuable insights that contribute to the overall well-being and safety of our student body.
For more information on the Bark for Schools+ or to sign up to receive alerts, please visit MISD's Bark webpage.
GoGuardian
GoGuardian functions on Chromebooks by integrating with the school-managed Google and Microsoft accounts, allowing administrators and teachers to monitor student online activity, filter inappropriate content, and control access to websites through the Chrome browser, essentially providing a layer of oversight on what students are doing on their school-issued Chromebooks; teachers can even see live views of student screens and interact with them during class time through the GoGuardian Teacher interface.
For more information on GoGuardian and how it complies with laws, please visit GoGuardian's website.
Internet Filtering
MISD protects against access to materials that are considered inappropriate for users to access through the District Internet system in the following manner:
- Network Use and Confidentiality: Please note that the use of the network is not considered confidential. Email transmissions, online communications, stored or transmitted data, and any other use of district-owned technology resources by students or any other user may be monitored, accessed, or restricted at any time by designated staff. This is to ensure appropriate use for instructional or administrative purposes.
- Content Filtering: MISD employs filtering devices and software to block access to obscene, pornographic, inappropriate for students, or harmful visual depictions as defined by the federal Children’s Internet Protection Act. The District strives to limit access to objectionable material. However, given the global access to computers and people, it is impossible to control all such materials on the computer/network/Internet, even with filtering in place. There is a risk that students may access material that may not be of educational value in the school setting.
- Internet Traffic Decryption: MISD reserves the right to decrypt staff or student internet traffic as necessary to create a safe and secure environment for students.
- Internet Safety: MISD makes every effort to ensure safety and security when using the MISD network including (a) preventing unauthorized access, hacking and other unlawful activities; (b) restricting unauthorized disclosure, use, and dissemination of personally identifiable information regarding employees or students; (c) filtering internet content for employees and students as appropriate; and (d) educating staff and students about cyberbullying awareness and response, as well as appropriate online Behavior. It is the policy of PISD to comply with the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA), the neighborhood Children’s Protection Act (NCIPA), the Protecting Children in the 21st Century Act (2007) and other applicable laws.