DYOD

There are many pros and cons to having a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policy in a school. Some of the pros for the school is that it saves the school a lot of money. Having a classroom set of computers such as iMacs for 30 students would cost the school $32,970.00. Student devices also tend to be more up-to-date than school computers so they can run what ever new software teachers are able to find. It also allows for technology to be used in every class at once rather than making teachers sign up for a lab or laptop cart. This encourages teachers to incorporate technology into their lessons as it is so available to the students. This will also increase student engagement and responsibility. If students know that they can't complete their work if they don't bring their device they will be more likely to remember their device. This is also similar to the situation students face in college therefore students who have experienced this may be ahead of those who haven't when they get to college. Even though their are pros for the school their are also cons.

Some of the cons that a school faces when they have a BYOD policy is that there is a increased chance of theft. Students must be made aware of this possibility and asked to keep their devices on them at all times. It also puts a responsibility on the family to afford a device. Many families may already have devices but some will not want their child to bring it into school. This depends on the class of students you are serving though. If the majority or a large portion of your students live in poverty than you may be asking too much of families. This also leads to inequality between students. Some students will have high end technology while other will not which may lead to students feeling insecure or getting made fun of which obviously no one wants but is sometimes difficult to stop. 

In the class there pros and cons as well. Some of the pros are that students are already familiar with their own devices. They therefore need less training on using their operating system and the programs they already have. Also, Wainwright says that "With BYOD students are more likely to continue learning outside of schools hours"(Wainwright, http://www.securedgenetworks.com/strategy-blog/20-Pros-and-Cons-of-implementing-BYOD-in-schools).  Students can continue their work when they go home if necessary. Some of the cons in the classroom are that students may be responsible for downloading new software that they don't have which takes class time. Also, the large numbers of devices on the network can be a strain and therefore it may be hard for all the students to be online at once. The biggest problem would be if some students didn't have a device to bring from home. The school would hopefully have loaner devices that some students could use if they needed. 

I am for a BYOD plan with the school providing for the few students who can't afford it in schools that serve the majority of students who are middle class or upper class. I feel that asking families that are struggling financially to provide their student with such an expensive investment is thoughtless. I think that this will generally work better with high school students as they are more mature and responsible. One of the difficult parts of this policy is that teachers needs to be trained on the different types of devices they allow. I would suggest this include laptops and full size tablets and smart phones are difficult to do things like word processing with. The school also needs a network that can handle all the devices on it. The school's policy will have to have a detailed description of the protocol for student's who violate the policy. This would include students who are not on task and students who are doing inappropriate things. Students are to be always on task and using the technology in the way the is instructed by their teacher. If they are not then they can lose the ability to use the technology. All of the policies will be presented to teachers before school during a PD and to all the students during their 1st class by their teacher. The students will be sent home with the policy to be signed by their parent or guardian and will not be allowed to use their device until it is signed. 

Here are some resources that have similar views. 

Chadband, E. (2012, July 19). Should Schools Embrace "Bring Your Own Device"? Retrieved from http://neatoday.org/2012/07/19/should-schools-embrace-bring-your-own-device/

Wainwright, A. (n.d.). 20 PROS AND CONS OF IMPLEMENTING BYOD IN SCHOOLS. Retrieved from http://www.securedgenetworks.com/strategy-blog/20-Pros-and-Cons-of-implementing-BYOD-in-schools

What is the K-12 Blueprint? (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.k12blueprint.com/about