s/o technology: school computer policy

[niq]

What does your school district do at the middle and high school level about computers?

Before the pandemic, students were not issued laptops unless parents asked for one (either b/c they didn't own one, or there were constant IT issues, etc.). The school had carts with 40 laptops that teachers could check out from the library if they needed them for class one day. I don't know if any classes had dedicated computers in the classroom.

Post-pandemic, everyone gets a laptop. At middle school I don't think you have to bring it to school every day, but lots of teachers do use them in class. There are not a lot of spares if you forget one or if you didn't charge it. The district runs blocking software to try to block games and other distractions, but the kids are too good at finding stuff that's not blocked. You can't block YouTube because teachers use videos on there for instructional purposes. Minecraft Educational Edition is not blocked. I have had one student say their laptop was confiscated for playing games during class, but IDK how much or how little that's enforced. A bunch of kids spend their entire lunch on them. The aftercare program is fine with them because it's one less kid misbehaving.

I think from the school's perspective, the phones are worse, because they lead to more bullying (both online and IRL), kids "going to the bathroom" for 20 minutes, they're easier to sneak and basically never used academically so you need a bright line rule, etc. That seems right. But I f#(*@%&#(@*@#ing hate the laptops. If I ran the zoo I would get rid of one laptop per student policies and maybe even restrict use during the school day.

Well, this turned into a rant. What is your school's "use of computers at school" policy and how do you feel about it?

[Jalapeñomel]

Youtube is blocked here. We, as teachers, have to ask to unblock certain YouTube channels ahead of time.

Students are given a Chromebook, and they can get loaners if theirs is broken or not charged.

I hardly every use computers in my class. I wish we went back to the computer lab instead of every kid has one.

[niq]

Mar 19, 2024 12:31:11 GMT -5 Jalapeñomel said:

Youtube is blocked here. We, as teachers, have to ask to unblock certain YouTube channels ahead of time.

This might be too in the weeds, but do you know how that's done? Maybe I can make a recommendation to the IT department...

[Jalapeñomel]

Mar 19, 2024 13:00:01 GMT -5 niq said:

Mar 19, 2024 12:31:11 GMT -5 Jalapeñomel said:

Youtube is blocked here. We, as teachers, have to ask to unblock certain YouTube channels ahead of time.

This might be too in the weeds, but do you know how that's done? Maybe I can make a recommendation to the IT department...

I'm not quite sure, but I believe it's through the Lightspeed Relay. When I go to Youtube it will either say available to all students or blocked.  Then I put in a request to have that particular video unblocked. 

[AdaraMarie]

My middle schooler has to bring her school issued laptop every day. It has some content controls on it but she seems to be able to do whatever she wants including spotify, youtube, and AO3.

I don't know how they handle it in class but it can be an issue at home.

[abs]

Starting in 6th grade every student is given a Chromebook. From my viewpoint they aren’t very locked down and kids find ways to Gmail each other all day and/or play games. I realized last year in 6th grade that we never talked about email etiquette and that was something to navigate. Otherwise meh. All homework and tests are done on the Chromebooks. I have noticed a shift away from them for things like math which I think is a good thing. Like I said in the other thread I think a healthy balance is a good thing and do think they spend too much time on screens in school.

[kitty]

K-4 has shared chromebook carts that are used periodically in school but not daily and are never brought home. They are used mostly for testing, "publishing" (aka typing up, adding photos, and printing) written work, and research projects. In my 4th grader's class, if a student finishes their work early, they are allowed to go on the chromebook and play "educational games" at a site like abcya.

5-8 has assigned chromebooks that the student is expected to bring home every night for homework and bring charged every day to school. They are used in almost every class during the school day and many of the homework assignments are digital and submitted in google classroom. The district has monitoring software that pings the principal if something inappropriate is searched and some websites are blocked but youtube isn't one of them. The chromebooks are as slow as dirt and have terrible resolution screens so my kids don't usually seek them out to use for entertainment.

9-12 is bring your own device but we aren't there yet so I'm not sure what the day-to-day looks like with that.

ETA: K-5 cannot send emails, only receive and they can only be from school district email addresses. In 6th they start letting them send and receive.

[macmars45]

Every kid gets a laptop in kinder. They use them for reading & math testing starting in kinder. It stays at the school in the classroom for most of elementary school. I know by 5th they take their school issued computer to and from school. I don't like how much computers are utilized at such a young age.

By high school they exclusively use said laptop so no math/science/history etc books go home. It's all on the computer. I'm not sure if they use physical books at the high school but my guess is no.

[waverly]

We are a 1:1 district and every kid over 3rd grade gets a Chromebook. They seem to have good blocking, but I want them to also block YouTube and they would hem and haw and ignore me when I asked. The teachers don't enforce goofing around on the laptop versus doing actual work which I understand becuase that would be a lot, but DS just basically plays on his laptop and doesn't do homework then in advisory class and saves it for home.

No Chromebooks are allowed at lunch. My kids have aged out of aftercare, so no issues there either. I think in middle school kids can email each other. I heard there was a google form to go to McDonalds after school. I assumed it was a club run by a teacher, but no a random kid sent it out.

[mrsGreeko]

Well we just moved my 6th grader into an alternative middle school today because he kept watching YouTube in class and getting in trouble and the situation was escalating and becoming unsustainable. My DS has severe ADHD and giving him the internet at his fingertips with zero impulse control was the worst idea anyone has ever had. He doesn’t have a phone yet for mainly this reason. I begged his teachers to use Go Guardian (a program where teachers can close tabs, lock kids into a certain tab, etc from their computers), I begged the district to “dumb” his computer down, I asked if I could put that teachers had to use Go Guardian in his 504 plan. No dice. Instead teachers chose battles of wills with him repeatedly. And ultimately he’s the one that is losing here.

So our district gives every student a laptop that they keep until graduation with occasional updated hardware and then they let teachers decide whether to use the expensive ass software that allows them to control it and most opt not to use it. So basically it’s an absolute disaster for kids with low impulse control (so most). And I’m so super pissed about the entire thing.

[erbear]

Our middle school issues chromebooks to each kid. They are expected to bring them to class and home every day. We don't use them every day in my class (history) but sometimes we do. I have a few extras in my room (they stay there) that kids can use if they forget theirs. I use Go Guardian to make sure they're on task if they are on computers. They aren't allowed to use them at lunch or outside of class during the school day. Kids also turn in their phones every day.

The high school is the wild wild west. Kids have to bring their own devices, and there seem to be very few rules about when, where and what they can do.

[expectantsteelerfan]

Since pre-pandemic, students were issued a laptop at the high school level, and now are at the elementary level and beyond. I'm not sure how it is for elementary, but middle school starts in 5th for us, and from 5th on, almost all assignments are submitted on the computers, and students no longer get hard copies of textbooks for any classes. I am not a fan of this, but I've also accepted that it's not going to change in the district we live in.

[chedifuen]

Every student in our district is issued a chromebook and by middle school virtually all their work is done on the computer. My son really struggles with some unusual vision issues that make paper work a challenge for him. The talk to text on the computer is a lifesaver for our family.

On the downside, I got a call from the middle school principal recently. A student sitting in front of my son was able to get around the controls and pull up a picture of a naked Drake. She had to call all the parents and warn us about what the kids had seen. Apparently my kid yelped really loudly and called attention to it.

[rootbeerfloat]

Middle school: They were assigned Chromebooks during/right after the pandemic, but last year and this year, they weren't. There are devices to use during classes, but they don't come home, and they aren't one-to-one/individually assigned. I'd guess they're pretty locked down. DD uses my laptop to do her homework (b/c "better" Google) and the extent of her goofing off on the school Chromebook is playing Wordle/similar word games. They also aren't allowed to have their phones out at all, even during recess and lunch.

High school: They are assigned a Chromebook to use all 4 years (or as long as they're enrolled). DS takes his back and forth every day because it's used in classes, but he uses his gaming PC to do homework (most assignments are Google Classroom/app-based) because that's where he spends most of his time. Phones are a free-for-all in HS; I guess (his) teachers have given up.

[186momx]

Our district doesn't seem to be 1-1 tech. DD says each classroom has a bank of Chromebooks and each student is assigned a number that correlates with a Chromebook. The laptops do not leave any individual teachers' classroom. I asked about her checking a computer out over a long weekend to work on a writing assignment and was told that school Chromebook can't leave school. I broke down a bought a laptop for home use as my aging desktop can't voice type. I have no idea what goes on at the high school. During the pandemic tech was 1-1 and I was shocked when they took it away especially for the older kids.

[sugarbear1]

Private school, but same area
All students have a macbook that must be in school, fully charged, every day. They are purchased through the school and we do have loaners (loaners are chromebooks though). Students are welcome to use their own PC, but very few do so.

Phones must be kept in lockers from 8am to 3:30. Exceptions are only per teacher permission (filming something, need to call home, etc.). Sure they could go to their lockers on the way to the bathroom, but in a class of 20 that's pretty easy to spot. It doesn't happen very often. There are also teachers roaming the hallways when they aren't teaching.

We do not allow video games, period, and we confiscate computers when we see them. I don't even say anything. I walk up, fold the computer closed, and take it. First offense, they get it back at the end of the day, and consequences escalate from there.

I teach Social Studies. 7th grade is 90% student led and really requires a lap top, though there are some hands-on activities (the remaining 10%). 8th grade is very pen-and-notebook heavy, by design.

ETA: no devices at lunch, ever. Some kids stay in for recess and try to play games, and sometimes they are successful. As soon as the weather gets nice though, we make everyone go outside. No devices on the field.

[redheadbaker]

Since the pandemic, each student is issued a Chromebook beginning in Grade 1 (not kinder). The school says this is because "we live in a technology and media-driven environment, marked by access to an abundance of information, rapid changes in technology tools and the ability to collaborate and make individual contributions on an unprecedented scale. Effective citizens and workers must be able to exhibit a range of functional and critical thinking skills, such as: information literacy, media literacy, ICT literacy (Information, Communications and Technology). The ability to navigate the complex life and work environments in the globally competitive information age requires students to pay rigorous attention to developing adequate life and career skills, such as: flexibility and adaptability, initiative and self-direction, social and cross-cultural skills, productivity and accountability, leadership and responsibility."

DS is currently in 6th grade (last year of elementary school). There is a content filter and firewall, though they don't say explicitly what is blocked -- I'm not sure if YouTube is blocked or not. Devices are not permitted at lunch/recess. Students are expected to bring it home every night, charge it overnight, and bring it back to school each day.

How much it is used in class varies from grade to grade and class to class.

[redheadbaker]

Mar 19, 2024 17:59:26 GMT -5 sugarbear1 said:

Phones must be kept in lockers from 8am to 3:30. Exceptions are only per teacher permission (filming something, need to call home, etc.). 

What about medical exceptions? 

[penguingrrl]

We have 1:1 chromebooks issued by the district. Prior to the pandemic they stayed at school 100% of the time for K-8, but were sent home in HS. Now they are sent home to charge and use for homework every day. They’re required to bring them for class to use as needed. How much they use them varies by class, by teacher, and by the day’s lesson plans. No teachers seem to use them an inordinate amount from what I’ve seen. They remain in lockers during lunch.

Sending them home did help with an equity issue. When my older two were little there was a lot of computer-based homework that we struggled to do. Money was tight and we didn’t have a computer for the kids (only one for H for work) but they had spelling city and other things that required one. Since they were assuming access, I’m glad that they now provide devices.

In the middle school phones have to stay in your backpack. If they’re seen during the day (including lunch) they’re confiscated until the end of the day. On the second offense a parent had to come in to get it back.

In the HS phones have to go in little cubbies purchased for them during class and can’t be used during t class, but are allowed during lunch.

I assume if students have a medical reason to need a phone they have a 504 plan addressing it.

[redheadk]

We are not in a one-to-one district and the district has no immediate plans to change that. They do have class Chromebooks to use that stay in the classrooms. I doubt the blocking software is amazing bc our district is generally not amazing with technology but I don’t personally worry too much about it bc dd is a goody two shoes and a highly motivated student who uses all extra time at school to get her homework finished. If she’s watching a skincare video on YouTube when she’s done I don’t really care unless it’s a problem for the teacher.

I am 99% sure students can qualify to check out a device if the parent contacts the counselor in secondary but I trust dh’s ability to lock down our personal services far more than our district’s IT departments ability to lock anything down so dd uses a home device if she needs one at home.

[erbear]

Mar 19, 2024 19:23:44 GMT -5 redheadbaker said:

Mar 19, 2024 17:59:26 GMT -5 sugarbear1 said:

Phones must be kept in lockers from 8am to 3:30. Exceptions are only per teacher permission (filming something, need to call home, etc.). 

What about medical exceptions? 

Not the poster but we have a similar policy. Exceptions are made for medical issues (one of my students is diabetic and she carries her phone bc it is her insulin alarm, for example). We also allow kids to use their phones with permission and supervision should they need to. They turn them into the grade dean in the morning and we keep them locked up until the end of the day, but they can access them if they need to.

[sugarbear1]

Mar 19, 2024 19:23:44 GMT -5 redheadbaker said:

Mar 19, 2024 17:59:26 GMT -5 sugarbear1 said:

Phones must be kept in lockers from 8am to 3:30. Exceptions are only per teacher permission (filming something, need to call home, etc.). 

What about medical exceptions? 

We literally discussed this last week as it has never come up. Of course a student may keep their phone, should any legitimate need arise.

[livinitup]

My child’s high school has one per kid and mine takes it to/fro every day. She also has a personal laptop at home. I think they use them pretty regularly in every class.

We had one issue of one child who was locked-down at home from all devices but still used his school laptop to email student mean messages. The school IT acted all dumb about being able to block one kid from sending these emails and eventually de-activated his account when he left the school/district (for related reasons) I found it frustrating that the school IT could not anticipate the issue nor resolve it quickly.

I agree that the laptops can be distracting beyond what I did to be distracted in school. Adults bitterly complained about my magazines and fun books. While not the same, we need to empower teachers not ignore them when they create and enforce good habits and parameters.

[nsl]

Mar 19, 2024 14:06:26 GMT -5 mrsGreeko said:

Well we just moved my 6th grader into an alternative middle school today because he kept watching YouTube in class and getting in trouble and the situation was escalating and becoming unsustainable. My DS has severe ADHD and giving him the internet at his fingertips with zero impulse control was the worst idea anyone has ever had. He doesn’t have a phone yet for mainly this reason. I begged his teachers to use Go Guardian (a program where teachers can close tabs, lock kids into a certain tab, etc from their computers), I begged the district to “dumb” his computer down, I asked if I could put that teachers had to use Go Guardian in his 504 plan. No dice. Instead teachers chose battles of wills with him repeatedly. And ultimately he’s the one that is losing here.

So our district gives every student a laptop that they keep until graduation with occasional updated hardware and then they let teachers decide whether to use the expensive ass software that allows them to control it and most opt not to use it. So basically it’s an absolute disaster for kids with low impulse control (so most). And I’m so super pissed about the entire thing.

I am so sorry that your very reasonable requests have been turned down and as a result you’ve had to pull your son from his school. I taught a number of kids from 2016 on who had similar impulse control problems with devices, and having a parent like you in those cases would have made a world of difference. Most often I saw parents in complete denial that the screens were the biggest problem we needed to tackle. 

[havarti]

Well, the SCHOOL LIBRARIAN showed the kids how to find unblocked games and lets them play during library time! 🤬

[havarti]

.

[devonpow]

DS1 is a junior in high school. DS2 is in 6th grade (we have k-8 schools, 6th is considered the 1st year of middle school).

In the K-8 schools every kid has a school issued Chromebook. It lives at school until 6th grade and which point the kids are required to bring it back and forth for homework etc. It has basically everything blocked on it lol. Kids are required to use the school issued Chromebook, so no personal computer use (Also at our school all phones and smart watches are turned in by the students when they get to homeroom and then picked up when school ends. That policy has made a huge, beneficial difference. )

At the high school you can request a Chromebook if you don’t have one but most kids have their own laptop. They do almost everything on line, so DS1 uses it in all classes. They have strict no phones out in class policies but I don’t recall the particular rules for laptops (obviously you are supposed to only be using the computer for what you are doing in class, but no websites etc are blocked)

[minniemouse]

Middle school is grades 5-8 in our district. They are issued school chromebooks. The school has things pretty locked down as far as websites are concerned. YouTube is blocked unless a teacher requests permission for a video. They can access some games, IXL, Zearn.
The school does not provide any devices for elementary or high school on a 1:1 basis. They have Chromebook carts for use in class. In high school, many kids bring their own devices. If they are using the school’s WiFi I think certain sites are blocked. If they are using a hotspot from their phone , then it’s whatever controls their parents set…but if they are caught looking at anything that is not appropriate for school they will get in trouble.

[jeaniebueller]

My kids have chromebooks and do almost all of their schoolwork on them (Do NOT get me started on this, there has been a huge emphasis taken away from penmanship and reading books because of this), but the school has youtube and a lot of other websites blocked. there are a few that kids are allowed to use.

[cmeon]

K-2 have ipads, 3-12 have HP laptops. The district blocks various sites on their network (not YouTube, FWIW), and monitors various communications via Gaggle (a big fat UGH). They go home to charge and are turned in before summer break.

We bought DS/11th a laptop before 10th grade when it was apparent that he really loved his computer science classes, and the district machines were completely insufficient. Kids are allowed to bring their own tech, but they have to use the guest network (which works out well for him because the school manages that network and all the coding resources the district blocks are open on the guest network).

Schools have a few spare devices, but not enough to account for the kids who forget theirs daily. Testing can get tricky on personal devices, but DS knows what he's doing and has always been able to make it work.