You are enrolled in a computer science class that uses professional-grade tools not available in standard courses: GitHub Copilot, VS Code, Python, Java / Processing, Magic School AI, Notepad++, and additional software through Company Portal. This access exists because your teacher trusts you to use these tools responsibly, ethically, and only as directed.
Six principles govern that use. They are not suggestions. They are not guidelines. They are the operating rules of this classroom — and they are summarized in an acronym chosen because the theme is exactly right: when you have powers other students don’t, what you do with them is the central question of the course.
Read each principle. Understand it. Then click Digital Sign to record your acknowledgment and paste it where your teacher directs you.
The S.P.I.D.E.R. Protocol
Your work lives on your device. During group work, collaboration means discussing strategies, explaining reasoning, and reviewing ideas — not copy-pasting code via Teams, email, or AirDrop. Every student types their own solution on their own keyboard. Sharing code electronically is academic dishonesty, even if both students fully understand what was shared.
No AI tool — GitHub Copilot, Magic School, ChatGPT, Gemini, or any other — may be used on any specific assignment without explicit teacher authorization for that assignment. A general yes to AI is not a yes to AI on every task. When in doubt: stop and ask. “I thought it was okay” is not a defense.
If an AI solves an assignment in 30 seconds that would take you 15 minutes from scratch, your grade may be fine — but your education is not. Before submitting any AI-assisted work, ask yourself: “Could I explain every line? Could I reproduce this without the tool?” If the answer is no, you have not done the assignment. You have outsourced your own learning.
Your elevated access — VS Code, GitHub & Copilot, Python, Java / Processing downloads, Notepad++, Magic School, and Company Portal — is a privilege your classmates in other courses do not have. You are being treated as a junior professional. Use each tool only for its authorized purpose, in the environment where that use was authorized, and never to give yourself or others an unfair advantage.
Programming is a discipline you are in the process of building — not a product you are producing for a gradebook. Using AI to shortcut that building process is not clever; it is self-defeating. Every step skipped is a gap in your foundation. You are here to become someone who can produce code. The ethics of the craft means caring about what you are becoming, not just what you are turning in.
These are protocols, not suggestions. Violations will result in loss of elevated software privileges, academic consequences per school policy, parental notification, and documentation. “I didn’t know” is not a defense — you are reading this now and acknowledging it below. With great power comes great responsibility. That responsibility is entirely yours.
Elevated Software Access
The following tools are available to students in this class that are not standard issue in other courses. Each comes with the full expectations of the S.P.I.D.E.R. Protocol attached.
This list is not exhaustive. Any software your teacher specifically provides access to or directs you to install falls under the S.P.I.D.E.R. Protocol. When in doubt about whether a tool requires permission — it does.
Violations & Consequences
These Are Not Suggestions
The following consequences apply to violations of any S.P.I.D.E.R. principle. Severity scales with the nature and frequency of the violation. Prior acknowledgment of this protocol is on record — ignorance cannot be claimed after signing.
- First violation: Verbal or written warning; documented in teacher records.
- Unauthorized AI use or code sharing: Loss of elevated software privileges (temporary or permanent) and academic consequence per school policy.
- Repeated or serious violations: Parental / guardian notification, referral to administration, removal from the elevated-access program.
- CodeHS or platform misuse (e.g., submitting AI-generated solutions on non-AI-authorized assignments) is treated as academic dishonesty under school policy.
- “I didn’t know” and “I thought it was okay” are not mitigating factors after a digital acknowledgment has been recorded.
Digital Acknowledgment
You have read the S.P.I.D.E.R. Protocol. Now sign it. Enter your name, confirm today’s date, copy the formatted acknowledgment, and paste it where your teacher directs you.