In recent years students' use of cell phones has periodically surfaced as an issue in schools, occasionally grabbing mainstream media headlines . Some boards have banned, and then later permitted, cell phone use, while our school board has chosen policy and guidelines which say that phones can be used, but only with explicit teacher permission. I may be fortunate, but my experience so far at Unionville has been that cell phones have not been a big distraction in classes. The rare time I do see eyes peering suspiciously down into their desk or lap, I ask students to just use the device on the desk if what they are doing is important and that usually helps them to make a good decision.
But cell phones now are only one of the many kinds of electronic devices my students carry to class. With pockets and bags stuffed with communication tools, am I missing an opportunity if those devices stay hidden in pockets and bags? I am pretty sure the answer is yes, so the next challenge is to find out how best to have them used to support student learning.
Bring Your Own Device
"One to one" programs where each student has access to their own computing device have been discussed for over a decade, but the idea has been more recentlydeveloping a higher profile. Proponents point to
increased critical thinking skills and student engagement by focusing on higher order skills like evaluating over remembering, by encouraging
collaboration, and by allowing students to learn at different rates and in different ways. A 2010 study of 997 American schools found that one to one computing
significantly improved student achievement through a variety of measures, especially when computers are used for formative assessment and teachers
collaborate weekly. Still, "one to one" programs are not common, especially because of the cost to provide and difficulty to maintain computer equipment
for the entire student population.
In response to the slow adaptation of "one to one" programs, some teachers are beginning to ask students to "BYOD", or "Bring Your Own Device." Some strongly object to BYOD because of equity concerns and the challenges of leading a class with a variety of student-owned hardware. I think these issues can be reasonably addressed by surveying classes to find out what technology students already have and would be willing to use, and designing class activities that fit with those devices. My experience with three classes of Grade 10 Academic math is that 50% of students currently have Internet access that they are willing to use in class, which means that in pairs or groups I can already ask students to search or respond online. One day "BYO Device" may be as mundane a request as "BYO Pencil," but we do not need to wait for 100% saturation to begin experimenting with how student owned technology could support their learning and evolve our classroom models.
See Also
- Royan Lee's excellent blog "Why you shouldn't do BYOD" ( http://bit.ly/t8lKHv )
- Royan's follow up: "Why I don't think BYOD is a socio-economic issue, Why one size never fits all, …" ( http://bit.ly/sIbP9N )
- Education World reviews pros and cons of one-to-one computing (http://bit.ly/vaFKQV )
