What about “bring your own technology”?
Consider some of the differences between the college and K-12 setting. While most colleges offer students access to some computers in laboratory settings, most do not issue students a computer. Some institutions may require that students purchase a specific computer and even take responsibility for loading the software on these computers before charging students for this equipment. However, in most situations, the equipment a student brings to class or to campus is up to student. The equipment available in labs would seem to satisfy what the institution feels is sufficient when tasks require the use of technology, but students are typically also allowed to use their own equipment to meet such expectations. Institutions typically support student use of their own equipment by providing some “infrastructure”; e.g., wifi and other forms of Internet access. K-12 institutions seem to take much more responsibility for the equipment students use and may even discourage the use of student-owned equipment.
Some K-12 institutions are beginning to explore the potential of what are sometimes called BYOD (bring your own device) or BYOT (bring your own technology) programs (Devaney, 2011). The logic goes something like this. Many students have cell phones. It is estimated that the percentage of students in the 12-17 range with a cell phone is about 75%. While phones have different capabilities and a “data plan” allowing a phone a wide variety of functions similar to a computer can add drastically to the monthly cost, survey data also indicate that about 75% of those with phones take and share photos with their phones (Lenhart, Ling, Campbell & Purcell, 2010). So, even by allowing students to use their phones, some additional opportunities would be available. Allowing students to bring other devices would expand these capabilities even further. If personal devices are valuable and the school cannot provide each student with personal technology, why not allow students with equipment to bring and take advantage of what they have? There may be answers to this question. Some might argue that this would not be fair because not everyone can afford an equivalent device. Some might suggest that making meaningful use of a hodge-podge of equipment would create a difficult situation for the teacher. How could the teacher be expected to respond to student questions that might originate from attempts to use so many different devices? On the other hand, note that colleges find it acceptable to provide for basic needs but also welcome what students can provide. As far as expertise goes, those of us who teach in college also assume that students can mostly take responsibility for developing expertise unique to the devices the students own.
Equity issues are important in all educational institutions and we consider this topic in depth in our final chapter. Note that some federal programs are available to address equity needs. For example, the e-rate program, administered by Universal Service Administrative Company under the control of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), provides access to discounted Internet services and infrastructure. The extent of the discount is a function of degree of poverty represented in the student population (proportion of students receiving free or reduced cost lunch) and other factors that influence access (e.g., rural vs urban). The schools are responsible for the equipment used by students. However, to the extent that infrastructure needs are subsidized, schools can spend more of the funds that are available on the equipment placed in the hands of students. The e-rate would also provide the wifi connectivity that would be necessary for those students would could bring their own wifi-enabled devices.
Note that programs such as the e-rate address differences among institutions and not differences within institutions. It might be useful to consider how you as a teacher might function in a setting where some students can provide their own expensive and powerful technology and some cannot. How would this influence the type of assignments you give? Would you provide the school-purchased equipment to those unable to provide their own? Would you focus on collaborative tasks so that groups of students could use the equipment available within the group in a collaborative way? As some institutions move forward with BYOD programs, their experiences and challenges will likely inform what other institutions do.