Should we allow students to bring electronic files to school? Every district faces this question. What’s more, it’s an issue that does not warrant a simple yes or no answer because it pits two foundational goals against one another.
On one hand, we are educational institutions. Our base purpose is to foster our students’ learning. There is certainly educational benefit to students being able to move their files from home to school and back again. Preventing access to external files makes learning more difficult for students and teaching more difficult for staff.
On the other hand, we have a mandate to provide a safe and secure environment for learning. Free file exchange between home and school comes with serious risks. Some students may bring inappropriate videos or photos. Disgruntled students or pranksters may introduce viruses or other malicious software. Even the most responsible students may, by opening an innocent looking email attachment, spread malware that brings down networks and takes an already overworked technical staff weeks to locate and eradicate.
Districts have sought a secure, effortless and cost effective method to allow students to safely transfer appropriate files to and from school. Unfortunately, most approaches are less than ideal. Yet, without a secure technological solution, how do you balance the need for educational support and technological security?
In Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District, we rely on the professional judgment of our site technology leaders. They work with staff to analyze each situation thoughtfully and make daily decisions on student safety. To maintain a balanced policy, site leaders work with teachers and other staff to consider factors such as:
- Is there a compelling educational need to transfer files?
- Are the students likely to use the resources well?
- Can accessing district servers from home provide the needed resource?
- Does the staff member making the request have the technical skills to assure it is used safely?
- Is the educational pay off on the proposed activity worth the risk?
Weighing the nuances of the potential rewards and mitigating the district’s exposure to risk requires information, assistance and judgment. Such deliberation is not unique to technology; the same process applies when considering the value of other proposals such as field trips, school assembly programs, or even tuning in to the President’s speech to students!
It is incumbent on technology leaders to help all staff members understand complicated technological issues as well as to be open to the needs of staff members. We have relied on site staff for a number of years and have not had any serious issues to this point. We trust, communicate, and partner with all staff to keep our network safe and our students learning.
We are asking our students to “power down” while at school. We say we want to teach them 21st century skills and how to be tech-savy; however, we don’t allow them to use their cell phones, ipods, or laptops while at school. As an administrator, I certainly understand the dilemma every school is facing on the struggles and safety issues of students using their own devices at school. I challenge educators to continue to look for ways to make it possible for students to bring technology from home, into the classrooms and back.
Do What I Say AND What I Do
If we are going to teach our students 21st century skills, then we have to provide an environment in which that can take place. For this reason, I think that the issue of allowing students to be able to transfer their files between home and school takes priority. We are going to have to continue to collaborate and find the best solutions to keep the security problem at a minimum. Like the Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District, schools will have to make daily decisions on student safety. This will become an easier and easier task as we all create this digital learning climate in our schools that is necessary for our students to be successful in the world today. You can visit http://www.epals.com/groups/support/pages/internet-safety-tips.aspx to get some great tips on how to teach students internet safety and how to have a safe and secure learning environment.