I was recently part of an online discussion where a mother
of a student in Grade Five wanted to know if other parents had sent personal
devices to school with their children.
In the front page of the child’s agenda was the school board’s brand new
“Bring Your Own Device Policy”. It looks
good, and it addresses many important points and concerns. You can find the policy here: Peel Board of Education BYOD Policy
Certainly, students need to learn how to use
technology. Many of them already are at
home and it only makes sense to tap into the vast network of knowledge and
programs available out there. Expecting
students to learn like they did fifty, twenty or even five years ago is
unrealistic. Gone are the days when
students needed to trek down to their local public library to find information
in dusty old text books. Now a visit to
the library means access to the most up to date information available. Journal
articles that used to take weeks to find their way to a student are now
available instantly. And students want to be connected online. You only need to watch a group of teenagers
walking down the street, engaged in conversation both with one another and with
whomever or whatever is on their device.
But the information is vast and is often potentially
misleading. I recall looking for
information on the Holocaust to show to a class and I was nearly a third of the
way through the video before I realized it was subtly trying to persuade me
that the Holocaust never occurred.
Without my own knowledge and experience on the subject there is no way I
would have ever suspected the site was anti-Semitic, and if I had been a
student I would easily have accepted the information as the truth.
Stories about bullying and on-line harassment are becoming
increasingly common, and tragic stories about suicides stemming from these
incidents leave parents and educators concerned and confused. How do we protect our children if there is
never a break from their devices, even at school?
For these reasons, it is vital that educators become more
tech savvy and teach their students how to use technology responsibly and
ethically. That is where this project comes in. We want to demonstrate that
students are able to use their devices to improve student learning in a
collaborate setting. We want to become
more comfortable with technology ourselves.
And finally, we want to share our experiences with our colleagues, so
that they too may become comfortable and provide the best opportunities for
their students to become discerning learners in a 21st century environment.
As the weeks go by, we will share our experiences here. Next time, I will write about the ground
rules – building an environment of trust with my students so they are clear
about the expectations surrounding their devices.
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