Bring Your Own Device: Helpful or Harmful?

            In order to help their students evolve into 21^st century learners, school are beginning to take advantage of technology.  With today’s economy and tight budgets, many schools are looking for ways to bring technology into the classrooms, but without bringing along the costly burden of purchasing a device for each student.  A potential solution that is being explored is “Bring Your Own Device”, or BYOD, which allows students to bring their personal laptops, tablets, iPads, and smartphones from home to use for instructional purposes in the classroom.  BYOD is a promising idea for schools that lack the monetary means to support the demands of technology because it takes advantage of the existing technology that students already possess and are familiar with.  As good as it sounds, however, the BYOD program has met some criticism from both staff and administrators who feel that some of the challenges that come with the program more than outweigh the presumed benefits.

            The BYOD initiatives, which were recommended in the United States Department of Education’s 2010 National Education Technology Plan (NETP), are hoped to not only help cut costs, but help increase student engagement as well.  The BYOD program brings with it several security concerns, including data protection and compliance with the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA) (Scholastic, 2013).  In order to avoid data security conflicts and protect student information, the wireless infrastructure for the BYOD program should provide a student network that is separate from the one used by teachers and administrators (K-12 Blueprint, 2013).  There should be a built-in authentication procedure which enables monitoring of Internet usage to ensure that only legitimate users are allowed access to the network (K-12 Blueprint, 2013).  A web filter can be used to provide Internet access controls, but the negative impacts are that it can affect the speed of the Internet and block desired content as well.  The protective wireless infrastructure for a BYOD program therefore must maintain the confidentiality, security, and integrity of student information that is stored online, while monitoring Internet usage to ensure students are abiding by the school’s acceptable use policies (K-12 Blueprint, 2013).

            Those in favor of BYOD feel there are many educational benefits related to the program.  Some feel it promotes greater participation, engagement, and student accountability in the classroom when the device is personally owned by the student (Concordia University, 2013).  Some feel it is cost-effective because parents provide the devices as well as the repair and maintenance costs, instead of the schools (K-12 Blueprint, 2013).  Others feel that the students’ devices are "more robust and more up-to-date than the traditional computer labs and mobile technology carts" (K-12 Blueprint, 2013, p. 2).  Still others argue that the flexibility of personalized devices supports the different learners and their needs (K-12 Blueprint, 2013).  Overall, the advocates of BYOD feel that this program has the potential to positively impact educational outcomes.  These supporters feel that the BYOD program will support 21^st century learning by creating an environment that focuses on the Four Cs of 21^st century education: communication, creativity, critical thinking, and collaboration.

            Through the implementation of BYOD, teachers can take advantage of several features that are found in most mobile devices.  "These features include data organization tools, web-based applications for classroom polling and quick tests, video for creating multimedia projects, and audio for podcasting and radio broadcasts.  Other uses include QR Codes (Quick Response Codes), digital storytelling, language learning, and probe attachments for measuring data" (K-12 Blueprint, 2013, p. 4).

            Although there are benefits to the BYOD program, there are a number of concerns as well.  Some feel that schools will have to devote a large amount of their technology budget in order to meet the growing demands for bandwidth due to the increase in the number of devices on campus.  Some also are concerned with getting buy-in from all parties involved, including teachers, administrators, parents, students, and staff.  Special considerations should be given to parental support, average household income, and the percentage of students who own their own device because these factors all play a part in determining whether the program will be successful or not.  Another concern is the need for professional development and training for those responsible for implementing the program (Concordia University, 2013; K-12 Blueprint, 2013; Scholastic, 2013).

            Educators also have worries about the BYOD program because some feel that the presence of the various electronic devices inside the classroom will be a distraction for some students (Concordia University, 2013).  Another concern is that although some sites and applications may be blocked, students may find ways around these restrictions.  Other educators feel that the BYOD program will "increase the divide between the lower-income and higher-income students" (Concordia University, 2013, para. 7).  Their concern is that the lower-income students will either feel inferior due to having to check out a laptop or tablet from school since they cannot afford one, or that lower-income students may face bullying since it will be easy to distinguish between the students who have their own devices and those who do not.

            BYOD case studies from two separate school systems, one in Georgia and the other in Ohio, suggest that the BYOD program has been a success in their individual school districts.  Forsyth County Schools in Georgia attributes their successful program to its strong network of technology advocates.  The district school board as well as the local communities are very supportive of the use of instructional technology and have high expectations for its use in the classrooms (K-12 Blueprint, 2013; Scholastic, 2013).  Oak Hills Local School District in Ohio also has implemented a successful BYOD program.  Their program allows both students and staff to bring in their own devices.  The school district believes that by using technology in the classrooms, their students will be better prepared for work in the 21^st century world.  The program is supported by a strong network of IT professionals, teachers, and students working together to ensure its success (K-12 Blueprint, 2013). 

            Each school district must consider what is best for their students when determining if the BYOD program is right for them.  One thing to remember is that the school’s vision of the learning environment should focus on what will best support and prepare the students for life outside of the classroom.  In making this decision, educators should keep the following quote by John Dewey in mind: “If we teach today as we taught yesterday, we rob our children of tomorrow.”

References

Concordia University.  (2013).  What is BYOD (Bring your own device) and why should teachers care?  Concordia University.  Retrieved October 16, 2013, from    http://education.cu-portland.edu/blog/tech-ed/what-is-byod-bring-your-own-device-and-why-should-teachers-care/

K-12 Blueprint.  (2013).  Bring your own device toolkit.  K12 Blueprint.  Retrieved October 16,   2013, from http://www.k12blueprint.com/byod

Scholastic.  (2013).  BYOD to school?  Scholastic.  Retrieved October 16, 2013, from             http://www.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=3756757