Now that you have explored the multifaceted reality of BYOD, we are now going to ask that each of you assume the role of either a school administrator or technology leader, who has been given the task of developing your schools “Bring Your Own Device” Policy for the upcoming year.
To facilitate this process, you will:
- Examine key factors, some of which are necessitating the creation of School BYOD Policies
- Review School BYOD Policies currently used in Canada
- Interactivity – develop your own School focused BYOD Policy
Key Factors:
Before developing your schools Bring Your Own Technology Policy, it is essential to explore factors which may potentially influence the direction of your own policy:
Public Opinion:
In North America, there are some that view BYOD Policies as nothing more than a cost savings strategy for school districts faced with limited budgets and resources. Or that this approach, which is meant to aid student access to technology, only further perpetuates the ever increasing technology gap. While others believe it is a means by which students do not have to unplug when they walk through our school doors (Robinson, 2012), but allows them to utilize their devices as mobile portals for lifelong learning.
Technology Access:
Over the last few years, multiple technological devices have become affordable and provide users with 24/7 access to ideas, resources, people and communities. Therefore, it is important for any BYOD Policy to realize that many students have personal access to, or use the following devices depending on their individual learning needs (Alberta Education, 2012):
- Laptops
- Netbooks
- Smartphones/handhelds
- Tablet Computers
- eBook Readers
- Audio mp3 Players
BYOD For The Learner:
Combined with the right pedagogy and used responsibly, technologies integrated within the education process can provide learners with (Alberta Education, 2012):
- The ability to explore areas of personal and academic interest
- The opportunity to collaborate with teachers and peers
- The opportunity to express themselves and their ideas efficiently and effectively
- The opportunity to access digital resources and learning environments to explore, research, think, synthesize, analyze, evaluate, communicate and express ideas
- A platform/forum for their voices
- Connections to local and global information and resources that allows them to explore real-world issues and topics, both individually and collectively
- The opportunity to learn about and attain high standards in digital citizenship
- The opportunities to construct ideas, opinions, arguments and evidence-based reasoning collaboratively
BYOD For The School:
A device in the hands of every student through a BYOD model could extend and enrich learning by providing opportunities to (Alberta Education, 2012):
- Shift instruction towards more student-centered learning, and emphasize authentic learning
- Provide flexibility through inclusive practices, which can include the use of assistive technologies, universal design for learning (UDL) and instructional understanding by design
- Focus on 21st Century learning skills, which include critical and creative thinking, collaboration, communication, global awareness and cultural literacy
- Use online and embedded assessments in formative and summative capacities
Current Policies:
Most BYOD Policies, based on the range of acceptable devices, fall naturally onto a continuum (which is shown below) ranging from high standardization to high flexibility. At one end of the spectrum, standardization, identifies a single type of device that all students must purchase. At the other end of the spectrum, flexibility, is an open-ended model that encourages students to bring any device into school. The models in-between limit the personally owned devices to specific technical specifications or capabilities (Alberta Education, 2012).
To help enhance your understanding of what a BYOD Policy might look like, let’s take some time to investigate two different models:
Standardization Model:
- Please click here (please note, that this link will download a pdf file to your computer) to view a BYOD Policy utilizing a standardization approach.
Flexibility Model:
- Please click here to view a BYOD Policy utilizing a flexibility approach.
Discussion:
- To assist you in developing your own policy, please begin by reading the following article entitled On Board With BYOD, which was originally published in Educational Leadership
- Now, as either, a school administrator or technology leader, please share your thoughts (by using the reply feature below) on what your BYOD Policy might look like, and the reasons for your choices
References:
Alberta Government. (2012). Bring your own device: A guide for schools. Retrieved from http://education.alberta.ca/media/6749210/byod%20guide%20revised%202012-09-05.pdf
Johnson, D. (2012, October). On board with BYOD. Educational Leadership. Retrieved from http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership.aspx
Robinson, J. (2012, February 27). 5 Areas of Consideration for Developing a BYOD Policy for Your School or District [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://the21stcenturyprincipal.blogspot.ca/2012/02/5-areas-of-consideration-for-developing.html
31 thoughts on “BYOD Policy”
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
My BYOD policy is simple. There’s a time and a place for their usefulness and ultimately they are designed mostly to be social devices. I take pains to explain the differences between the personal and professional spaces and ask that they treat my classroom like a professional space.
I appreciate your aim toward simplicity Joel. Do you require them sign off on anything, to formally acknowledge and accept your distinction between personal vs. professional spaces and what specific expectations you have? Do you feel it would be necessary?
Thank you for your reply, I agree for some people with a technical background, a policy such as this (which can have students bring laptops, tablets, netbooks, handhelds and even cell/smart phones) can be relatively easy to implement. However, I wonder what your thoughts might be about a BYOD policy for an entire school that has many different viewpoints surrounding BYOD, and more importantly, various levels of technical experience and ability? Is it possible to accomodate all members of the educational community? If not, what might be done to accomodate as many as possible?
Thoughts?
I by no means consider myself a BYOD expert who is qualified to draft a policy. As someone with no K-12 teaching experience I am sure there are many factors that I have not considered.
However, I think the following points may be good rules of thumb:
– Students should responsible for their own device in terms of updates and troubleshooting, although that may be a lot to ask from some students
– Even if each student does have access to their own computer/laptop, actual face-to-face and social interaction time is still necessary to develop social skills.
– Digital citizen training discussed in this blog is imperative.
I think what you have provided, as “Rules of Thumb” make a good starting point for the development of specific philosophical beliefs, which are fundamentally necessary for such policies to discussed and decided upon. For it is essential, that our beliefs match our actions, or else significant discord occurs.
I would like to ask what your definition of Digital Citizenship is? And what might that training look like? The reason I ask, is that I believe even though it is a term commonly used, many of us most likely have a different take on what it should look like within a school and even classroom. And it is through dialogue like this, that we can explore what this might mean, and how it might look.
Thoughts?
I think one of the main of goals of digital citizenship training should be making the students realize that they are accountable for everything they post online. This would include topics like “stranger danger”, cyberbullying, posting personal information.
I have used many of those services as well, and have found value in them.
Also, I would also like to add, that I think many adults also need to be properly trained in that regard as well.
Thoughts?
Some of the things I think are important when considering a BYOD policy for a district or school are:
1. Specific rules on when the device can be used
2. Limitations on use of certain functions (ex: personal texting during class is not okay) or even better a list of apps/programs/functions that are acceptable
3. Code of conduct for safe and acceptable use (citizenship could be outlined here)
4. Consequences if rules and conduct are not followed
5. Signatures from parents regarding acceptable use
6. We have a district BYOD policy that allows each student at the highschool to bring devices. Each device they would like to bring must be added by the tech people and EACH device requires its own form signed by a parent.
Thank you for the guidelines you have provided for the BYOD policy that you would create. Our school has something very similar, in regards to its use, such as when the device can be used, and what the device should be used for. To facilitate that conversation, and help students understand proper use, we have framed it from a Tool or Toy perspective, and use it with anything that exists in the classroom. For example, a textbook is a tool when you use it to complete your work, it is a toy (or weapon) when you hit somebody with it. From this stance, we have helped alot of students use their devices appropriately.
Thoughts?
Secondly, I have seen from time to time, an approach where students register their devices with IT. I am curious what does this mean, what is it supposed to accomplish? Any information will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks.
Rebecca,
I like your points on your BYOD policy. Our school does not allow this at this time. However, I like the idea of adding each device even it must be time consuming. The toughest thing with a BYOD that I see is determining what is acceptable use and how to “catch” students that are not using it appropriately. It is easy for a student to claim that they were using the calendar when in fact they were texting. This is one area that I think will be difficult for many teachers to deal with. I know of other teachers that don’t really mind this as long as the student is able to get the work done. I don’t agree with this entirely as the student might be okay, but what about the person they are communicating? Are they able to deal with the distraction as well as the first student?
My BYOB
Personal devices must have specific capabilities in term of hardware and software because I believe that function is most important for any tool.
Devices must be registered with the school to help combat stealing.
Students will be guided as to what measures to deploy secure their device
I would also try to arrange some kind package for maintenance of these devices to reduce cost to the students because I am from a very small country and my students have limited resources
Student must be given clear guidelines as to when, where and how the devices are to be used and the consequences of violating the rules.
Teachers must be allowed full access to the school’s network
Teachers and students must be an integral part of the decision making process for the BYOD policy and how IT as whole is to be used in the school.
I can see how having devices with a specific level of function (hardware/software) can help facilitate the ease at which this approach can be adopted into the classroom. However, with the ever increasing use of Cloud Based apps (google docs/drive), is this still a limiting factor? However, having sufficient Wifi penetration in the school, would be necessary for Cloud based apps to work.
Thoughts?
Secondly, I am curious as to registering of the electronic devices? How might this look? How might this limit theft?
Thoughts?
In terms of basic requirements I was thinking in the light of playing the basic multimedia formats without choking, WiFi, touch screen etc which is becoming common place right now for mobile devices. In addition they must provide for drawing and writing naturally via a stylus along with the the appropriate software. Finally a physical keyboard to allow the composition of long documents.
I can see the benefits to the specific requirements in which you are thinking about. And yes, this would be doable for most students, however, I currently have students (who for various reasons) are unable to properly write, however through the speech-to-text software in their phones, and google docs are able to compose decent answers to various levels of questions, and are beginning to explore essay writing.
Therefore, should an effective BYOD policy, keep these types of students in mind?
Thoughts?
Having a database of serial number against student ID will facilitate with the establishment of ownership which can deter theft. In addition encouraging them to use the anti theft software prey @ http://preyproject.com/ will not only help with this but with finding lost devices,
Interesting idea. I wonder though, who would create the database in the first place, then manage it for all future changes? For myself, even though this might deter theft (and only if the student decided to use the device in the school again…) the greater determent would be for the adults in the building. For I have run a BYOD test in my classroom, and managed only the serial numbers of 30 identical devices, and it was a significant task. I cannot imagine an entire building, with countless different devices, changing randomly, yet regularly…
Thoughts?
When we have registered a device, we will log its unique MAC address so that we know when it appears on the network. This allows us to track usage since it is connected to the assigned IP address. This way, we know if a student is using up our bandwidth downloading movies from the Piratebay while she is at school. We can also potentially track the source of a virus that invades our network. Any BYOD program would need to consider this potentiality. If users can use their computers and devices for whatever they want, they will. It is inevitable that BYOD will increase the likelihood of malware getting into the school’s network. There not only have to be safeguards in place, but there must be something written into the policy about what users are bringing in. And as others have pointed out, bandwidth usage and videos and so on are an issue.
In our school, we give out the machines, but collect them at the end of the year. They are our machines. It is our prerogative to keep an eye on how the machines are being used. Teachers have Remote Desktop installed and are able to login to student machines to watch what they are doing during class. This becomes a bit tricky if the student brings his own machine. Is this now an invasion of privacy?
Thoughts?
Just thought I would drop a quick question in regards to the BYOD policies/guidelines that have been presented so far. While I agree, that focusing on the learner is vital to this process, I was wondering what your thoughts are for the adults in the school/classroom? Would this policy look different for them?, should it look different? If it is different, would that dichotomy present issues?
Thoughts?
First of all, I would ask how does BYOD fit within the school’s broader mandate and vision towards student education? Is the school trying to teach children how to use specific technologies? Or is its vision broader than that? Are we for example trying to nurture greater self-driven learning and collaborative behaviours and a more holistic view towards education?
Identifying the type of problem you are trying to solve will help better determine and achieve the results we seek. And this process should not be limited to schools or specific individuals developing policy and then decreeing it on others from the top down.
In fact, if we want the students and the parents to be engaged and committed to achieving our BYOD goals, why not mobilize them to help determine the policies they eventually need to support? And while we’re at it, why not seek to create partnerships with other schools that have different advantages than us, and see if we can work together on exploring different types of BYOD opportunities: A BYOD initiative for inner city youth might not work for kids going to private school or kids with learning disabilities, or kids who are trying to develop apps versus those who are trying to use them etc.
This is all textbook stuff, and if we believe you can apply it wholesale, then we are headed for serious disappointment.
I’m guessing here that like most other practitioners, teachers have to focus their efforts on building a hut, not a castle.
If that is the case, then having a boss (principle?) that will support our efforts is necessary, but not sufficient.
As far as policy goes, I think that those in charge of setting policies should create loose guidelines, and then empower teachers to get out there and fine tune them, which they can only do with the support of the school, parents and of course, their students.
Such an approach may not lead to the “Right” BYOD policy immediately. But I would venture that its long-term usefulness and success would be more likely than the alternative. I think Doug Johnson’s guide is good. I would just ask, might it work better if it was charged from the bottom up?
While reading your initial two paragraphs regarding your thoughts on BYOD, I recognized the simple facts, that for this to properly exist within a learning environment, the practice must match the philosophy of the school. And for myself, I believe that too many times, are beliefs are incongruent with our practices. Secondly, should all members of the learning community be engaged in this process, admin, teachers, students, parents, etc… yes – for they will all be affected by the choices made during the development and implementation of such a policy. For myself, these are not things that only exist in textbooks, this is something our school last year (the process took almost ten months) went through. To develop a policy that recognizes where our students, staff, and parents were… and what we could do in regards to BYOD. However, working with other buildings, etc… I believe this is a potential, however the amount of trust that would need to exist for such a venture to occur, is hard to imagine.
As for your last thoughts on BYOD Policies, and what it would need to entail, I fully believe that this is possible. But again, a culture of trying would need to be created, a culture of trust to experiment and potentially fail must exist, or else nothing will change. For we must remember, that technology changes, therefore so must any policy trying to govern it.
Thoughts?
-The staff as a whole needs to be approached and everyone needs to be given the proper training and support needed to implement this system.
-Specific rules need to be agreed upon by the staff and these rules should be enforced equally in each class.
-Teachers need to monitor students closely and ensure that they are using their devices for the right intent. If they are not using the devices appropriately there should be some sort of consequence.
-The school should be equipped with the right capabilities to make using Boyd a success such as ample WiFi access.
-Parents should be well informed of the BOYD policies adopted and should be aware that students are responsible for their own devices.
-There should be allocated areas for devices to be stores safely when not in use.
-Proper cyber bullying training and digital citizenship training should accompany the adoption of BOYD.
Nureen
Thank you for providing your guidelines for a BYOD policy, for myself, I believe the last four are essential, if not mandatory in some cases for a BYOD program to be effective.
However, I wonder about the first three. For the simple reason, that no two teachers are in the same thinking space, or technical ability in regards to BYOD. For the same training for different teachers could range from elementary to too difficult. This alone, would then create further difficulties in regards to guidelines, some would feel these are to strict while others not enough…
I wonder, might there be an approach that meets the teacher where they are at, with the approach that is required for them? Much like, we as educators are expected to meet our students at.
Thoughts?
In order to come up with my policy, I searched for ideas and if anything, was surprised by how different all these policies were, and how what they concentrated on was so different, too. (Visit http://byod.wiki.caiu.org/Policy+Examples). Some interesting suggestions have been made so far, like being flexible and fine tuning the policy as things progress, and also about who to involve. I agree all involved should have a say: parents, teachers, students and ITC people.
I like how you have said that each policy you looked at was different, and that through time they need to adapt, and that flexibility was essential.
These three pieces are essential, as technology evolves way faster than effective policy can be created. We should not design for what students have, but should design for what they could do, or at least be flexible enough to allow new things to happen.
Thoughts?
Although I do not have any experience in the K-12 segment, I recently reviewed the BYOD guidelines (not policy) for Faculty of Medicine at UBC. It is interesting to note that the guidelines were based on device capabilities (Point 3 in the standardization to flexibility continuum). For instance, the devices should be capable of viewing content from the WebCT Vista LMS that is most compatible with certain browsers types and should be able to support Flash.
In my opinion, the core advantage of BYOD approach is to empower the learners so that they can learn the way they like with whatever device they have at their disposal. Instructors and policy makers should ensure that the course content and policies support this common objective and facilitate learning rather than impede it.
From your perspective, it is essential that BYOD support the learner, not the provider of education. Therefore, I wonder, do you think that the more restrictive policies are put in place to make schools, teachers, IT departments lives easier, while ignoring what the student needs? And vice-versa, does the more flexible options focus on the student, while making our lives more difficult?
Wouldn’t it be nice to find another option that works for everyone?
Thoughts?
I definitely agree that a happy medium is what we should be aiming for. Based on what I have seen, the policies are quite restrictive in some institutions which some what limit the options students have in selecting their device. Maybe I was bit biased towards the students, however for a BYOD policy to be put in place, perhaps concessions will have be made at all ends.
Thanks for the thought provoking question. It is a topic my school is currently grappling with. I agree with Visramn who mentioned the whole staff has to be on board. Imagine the educator who is not technologically savvy… how could they possibly begin to envision educational ways students could use their devices. This presents some major challenges. Someone else mentioned what about adults in the building. Personally, any policy I would create I would want both children and adults to uphold.
If I were an educational leader I believe I would lean towards a more flexible BYOD model, similar to Wolfcreek Public Schools. I would not want to stipulate which devices parents should purchase for their children because picking one brand over another could become politically or financially motivated. I liked the idea mentioned earlier by Frank about collaborating with parents, as well as lawyers to construct a policy. Within the policy I would hope to form a parent contract for them to sign that states they have read and agree to the terms. Additionally I would want a student oath which the students would need to deconstructed to ensure they fully understand what they are agreeing to. Furthermore, I would want agreed upon consequences for misuses of devices. Lastly, I believe a BYOD plan would need to include something about where the devices will be stored during non-use periods of time.
Avninder mentioned the need for Digital Citizenship education. I agree this is necessary. Some great programs include Passport to the Internet and CommonSense Media has some outstanding lesson ideas and videos to share with students.
While I agree that having an entire staff on board would make the implementation of BYOD easier, I truly believe it would never happen then. I therefore propose that consensus (defined professionally as an acceptable resolution, one that can be supported, even if not the “favourite” of each individual) must exist before going forward, for if not… we are working towards someones specific agenda, and not a recognized need for the learning environment.
Secondly, you mention having staff not technologically savvy. I believe, that most public schools in Canada can easily fit in that category, however, waiting for people to achieve a basic level, would again force this to never happen. Is it essential that everyone on staff has this skill… I do not believe so, I think it is essential that different staff members have different skill sets, that come into play when they are needed. Much like, Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development and More Knowledgable Other.
As well, I am speaking from experience. Our school last year, uprooted its policy, with some of the concerns you have mentioned. Individual teachers have individual autonomy within the classroom, but an open use policy, with basic safety elements exist in common areas, and considering the Lock-n-Block approach we used over the last couple of years, our school has breathed a huge sigh of relief over our current approach. However getting their was not easy, there were discussions with staff, students, admin, and parents for nearly one year, to develop a policy with flexibility for technology and those involved. Yes, we did not add a Digital Citizenship education element to it, but to be honest we were battling that before hand with our Lock-N-Block – and not sure where it would fit in, or who would teach it. But are we discussing these issues individually as they arise yes.
My one question though is the inclusion of Lawyers which you mentioned, what role do you see them playing here throughout this process?
Thoughts?
In a similar stance as other BYOD policies mentioned I think key issues revolve around what is important for the learner. How does the implementation of a BYOD program actually meet the needs of the learners and the curriculum outcomes? I think that as Tom mentioned, we can’t wait for an entire staff to be on board…especially in those schools with staffs of hundred or more teachers, EAs and admin. A decentralized approach might be best in this scenario. The school and the teachers would have to set the ground rules on what is expected in each course. Some courses lend to implementing BYOD more than others. Some teachers may be opposed to it.
I think the big picture is something we need to look at. Will a BYOD in a course/school help the learner in the long run? Is this something that they will need to learn how to manage at a young age to prepare them for their educational and career goals? I understand that IT services and admin might be wary of security and accessibility issues. I think that these are legitimate concerns but educational pedagogy should help in determining the use or non-use of BYOD, rather than dismissing the idea on the grounds of technical issues.
Ken
My policy would have students and parents be able to choose what brand and type of computer they want to purchase, as long as it has the minimum requirements that we had decided. My reason for this, is that some people are mac people and some are pc people. Allowing the freedom of choice in this matter might make parents more embracing of the policy.
Adopting a BYOD policy would also mean that my school would need to spend some money. I would ensure that each class has 5 ‘house’ computers, that could be used by students who might not be able to afford their own device, or have theirs stolen, lost or broken. Also, the other money I would spend would be to increase the bandwith for the school’s wireless. It would be quite a debacle if BYOD was adopted and the classroom was slowed to a crawl because of the amount of users on at once. Teachers would eventually get so frustrated, that they might end up bitter and giving up on lessons that use the technology at hand.
My pro-d would be geared almost entirely to BYOD and ways to make teachers comfortable and capable. Idea/lesson shares, app tutorials, troubleshooting suggestions would be some of the things that the staff could work on together. If teachers do not have the ideas or ability to implement technology in their classrooms, the program would not have a chance. Everyone has to be on board to some extent.
Parental communication would also be key to my policy. Newsletters home, as well as every two months offering workshops in the school to help bring parents up to speed with what is going on and why. While not all parents will need these workshops, providing them could allow home front problems to be addressed and solved.
I would use the add on like Wolfnet uses to limit computers in the school to go to certain websites (limewire, torrent sites, porn, etc.) to help ensure student safety and save band with for educational purposes.
Finally as this is a new policy in the school I think it is important to have it flexible. I would establish a committee within the school to look at the policy and update it every three months. In the fast paced changing world of education technology, it is key that the policy is able to keep up with it as well.