I just recently found out that the high school in my district will be implementing an iPad one-to-one initiative during the 2015-2016 school year. I think that it is great that our little town is moving in the right direction during the 21st century. However, I would have wanted to have a Chromebook one-to-one school, but I teach at the middle school and have no say with what goes on at the high school. My understanding is that the teachers were the ones that decided what they wanted.
This week, our technology coordinator mailed letters out to the parents of the high school students letting them know that the high school would be implementing a one-to-one iPad initiative for the 2015-2016 school year. The letter stated that parents had to sign the acceptable use form and pay a $50.00 maintenance fee for the iPad. The parents were also informed that students could only download stipulated apps and software and that no personal apps were to be installed on the iPad. In addition, if the student loses or breaks the iPad, then the parent would be responsible for the cost of the replacement of the iPad.
Many parents are irate over the fact that they have to pay a maintenance fee and replacement cost if the iPad is lost or stolen. The students are not allowed to bring their own iPad because the school will not be able to monitor personal iPads. So, I am curious how other schools are implementing 1:1 programs in their schools.
For those that implement a 1:1 iPad program in your school, do parents have to pay a maintenance fee? If so, how much? If they do not have to pay a maintenance fee, do parents have to pay anything? For those that have Chromebooks instead of iPads in your 1:1 program, is there a fee?
My school has just started a 1:1 initiative this past year. Ours in not truly 1:1 because the students are not allowed to take them home. I am an elementary teacher, so that is alright with me. I think it is fine at my level, but middle and high school students should be able to take their devices home. Then, they would be able to implement a true flipped classroom.
ReplyDeleteWhen our teachers get awarded the grant, they get to choose whether they want iPad minis or another device. They just have to justify why they want a different device.
Students/parents do not have to pay a fee since the devices don't go home. Honestly, I'm not sure what happens if one is broken or stolen. I haven't had that come up yet, and I hope it doesn't. I guess the district is in charge of the maintenance fee, but $50 a year sounds pretty steep to me. As a parent, I would be angry at having to pay that, especially if they have a different device that they can't take to school, although I do see the point about not being able to monitor the personal devices.
When I spoke with our technology coordinator, he informed me that the high school teachers chose to go with the iPads. The students are allowed to take them home but I don't know why there is such an expensive maintenance fee attached to them. I am sure there is some reason behind it. I know that some schools have a BYOD program. Do you know how that works? Allowing some students to bring their own device might eliminate the phone calls from parents about this maintenance fee issue or cause more headache. I don't know.
DeleteOur iPads came from a bond measure. As far as I know there is not maintenance fee charged to families (they would not be able to pay it). All students K-12 have an iPad, but the elementary students are not able to take them home. The middle and high school students do. The teachers do not generally let students download personal apps and they are all hooked up to the AirWatch system. I don't know what happens with older students who take the iPads home, but the elementary students put their iPads in a cart/safe that is bolted to the classroom floor.
ReplyDeleteI am afraid that many students at the high school in my district will not be able to pay the maintenance fee. What is AirWatch? I have never heard of it.
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