Rockingham County moves forward on digital devices policy.

The RCPS school board voted 4-1 to accept the proposed cellphone policy for a one semester trial run starting in the fall of 2012.  The concept received a lot of attention, discussion and research by stakeholders and included a robust discussion on Facebook provided by one of the board members.

Here are some of the comments in italics made by this blog's author on the topic:

The thread posted last week on this topic was informative, full of discussion and had several informative comments by me as I was on the committee that studied this issue for months. Stakeholders had comments and issues raised that were good discussion also during that thread. The committee provided a public page for comments by our division computer supervisor, interviewed students, teachers, administrators, parents and digital specialists within the division.

No unanimous consensus was reached and most likely will never be reached on this topic... understood. Advancing technology will always be uncomfortable for some, will always involve the digital divide(haves vs have nots) but in the larger picture over time enhances education and communication. 

Our digitally connected society is now a fact of life. The genie cannot be stuffed back in the bottle. There is always a downside of free and open communication and access just as there is a downside of oppressive or undue control and manipulation by those in charge.

After studying and researching this HEAVILY for the last several years, I'm convinced it's the right path to take by putting the learners in a position to access more data in their own way. This gives them the opportunity to gain responsibility, learn the ethical use of devices and take possession of their own learning(the goal of modern education).

Most teachers are optimists. We believe students can learn, can adapt and will make the most of a situation. I'm appreciative of the comments from optimistic parents who get it and are willing to express their views publicly.

and another with questions raised in red

"If they can google it, what then is the role of a human instructor? Pardon my old-fashioned ways"

TODAYS media centric classroom promotes the students taking possession of their learning... the OLD model of teacher "pushing" all the data to the student is no longer effective! Students today are interested and willing to take their learning to the next level... personal learning. Teachers today are facilitators of learning. Any time a student goes after the knowledge, is interactive with the lesson, the lesson is better learned. The student takes possession of the process... Self actualization has ALWAYS been the best way to learn something.

Rockingham County Schools Lead on "My Digital Life" Initiative

Rockingham County Schools were the first division in Virginia to implement 100% participation of a Virginia School division.  According to sponsor Neustar, RCPS was also the first school division in the NATION to complete the initiative division wide!

ALL four middle schools in Rockingham implemented the online course in the 8th grade computer literacy classes this spring.  778 8th graders participated in the program.

A video highlight of the awards ceremony at J.Frank Hillyard Middle School is on Vimeo at: https://vimeo.com/43463021

Flickr photos taken by Katie Hughes are at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/everfievents/sets/72157629987970424/

Background on the initiative is at: http://www.neustar.biz/about-us/news-room/press-releases/2012/neustar-launches-digital-literacy-and-responsibility-program-for-virginia-schools

Photo: Nathan Lindstrom

Pocket-Sized Revolution

How one district is leveraging smartphones  and other forms of BYOD to disrupt its learning model.


" In fact, a day rarely goes by that the phones-Droid Incredibles, purchased by the school district-aren't incorporated into lessons."

The topic of privacy and school divisions overstepping their legal boundry is a hot and ongoing item.  Here are several more articles on the topic.

Arlington expands social media rules for teachers
Under a new policy, Arlington teachers would have to register social media accounts geared toward instruction — such as a class Facebook page or a Twitter account used for homework reminders — with their principals, who would be allowed to request the account’s password.
In the Digital Age, Welcoming Cell Phones in the Class





Do schools have the right to expel students for tweets?
"The ’automatic tracking system’ the school uses apparently tracks tweets whenever a student logs in to their account. There is a question mark circling around whether the system actually works or not — as the student states his message was sent outside both school grounds and hours."



The implications of schools demanding access to student mobile devices
"As the backlash from the parents of affected students increases, schools are looking for ways that they can legally monitor cyberbullying — which usually takes the form of text messages or communication across social networks."



Amidst a Mobile Revolution in Schools, Will Old Teaching Tactics Work?
“People are talking about this being an inflection point,” said Elliot Soloway. Soloway is a professor at the School of Education at the University of Michigan, and a longtime proponent of mobile learning. “It feels like something major is about to happen. It went from a silly idea, to, ‘Of course it’s inevitable.”

But recently – in the last two or three years – something has changed. Schools seem to be getting over their fears and want to bring the Web and social media and all the attendant digital tools into the classroom. You can see this change reflected in a slew of new Acceptable Use Policies (AUPs) across the country that emphasize responsibility over mere acceptance and the implementation of school-wide blogs and even the distribution of smartphones for classroom use.

How Teachers Make Cell Phones Work in the Classroom

"As soon as kids walk in, Musallam sends out a text blast through Remind101, asking them a challenge question that’s related to the day’s lesson. “First person to tell me the units on K for a second order reaction gets chocolate,” he types and sends off. His students know he does this regularly, so they’re constantly anticipating the question during the day, in and out of class."

Good article on "How Americans really use cell phones" CNN

VSTE response to DOE discussions

"The medium is not the issue; in fact, educators should model appropriate digital citizenship when using technology to communicate in appropriate, timely, and powerful ways. VSTE strongly advocates for professional development and training materials to better prepare educators to leverage the technology for positive interactions with students."


http://vsteonline.ning.com/profiles/blogs/vste-responds-to-the-virginia

Cellphones Empower Crime, Spoofing, Riots

Social media to blame for Lamar High School ‘riot’
One school is dealing with just how effective a cellphone can be to start a riot in their school.
"...He said the seven students who were punished were found to have instigated the incident using social media. He said the administration tracked them down through interviews with students, watching security tapes and reviewing Twitter posts, particularly those “creating a buzz” about it beforehand."
Read the article

The Untraceable Man
" To spoof means to appear from somewhere or someone else than the original and true number so basically by spoofing a SMS message the receiver of it will not know it is from you and basically you can make it appear to come from any number you want. Use your imagination with this one because it is quite fun. The real problem is that they usually cannot respond to your message as most of the SMS spoofing services are offered online"
http://untraceableman.blogspot.com/2009/01/how-to-spoof-sms-text-messages.html

SpoofApp: Fake Your Caller ID and Voice on the iPhone
SpoofApp is a native application for the Apple iPhone that lets callers pretend they are calling from a phone number other than the one they are actually calling from.
http://www.iphonefaq.org/archives/97428

Continued BYOT discussion and links

Our Cellphone policy committee meets this coming week.  We continue to search and discuss both sides of the BYOT.  Please comment on what your division is doing.
Here are some more current links on the topic:
http://www.edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2012/04/byod-new-one-one
Harrisonburg City Schools and Karen Campbell are leading the way in Western Virginia with the BYOT initiative.
http://web.harrisonburg.k12.va.us/tech/docs/tech_plan/Guidelines_Student_Devices.pdf
http://www.whsv.com/news/headlines/Schools_Will_Change_Cell_Phone_Policy_146754075.html
and from Michigan
http://www.neola.com/godfreylee-mi/search/ag/ag5136.htm

Your Policies?

Many divisions and schools have AUP policies that are currently being re-written to cover cellphone use as a computer in the buildings.  COPA laws apply, as well as, appropriate use of the internet.

Share your school or divisions policy.  Links are appreciated.  We're interested in your logic or justifications for your positions as we all formulate positions on this urgent issue.