Chromebook 101 - Setting Up Expectations

Like any activity that teachers implement in class or any tool that teachers provide for students in class, teachers are required to think about what can go wrong and what will be the consequence for the actions.  Many districts, mine included have created an acceptable use policy, a list of do's and don'ts with electronic devices and access to the internet.  That being said, once the acceptable use policy was written and printed, it was out of date.

You are never going to know all the things that can go wrong or all of the possible ways in which students can misuse technology.  Thought must be given to how you, the teacher, set up your expectations for electronic use and your consequence structure.  Here are a couple of things that have worked for me with both iPad and 1-1 chromebook implementations in my high school science class.

Read through the district policy on student electronic device usage.

1. In some way shape or form, walk the students through the different things that are considered, by district standards to be wrong or inappropriate.
2. You could read through it, jigsaw the reading, have a note-taking activity, video activity, or presentation activity showing examples of offenses to the Acceptable Use Policy.

Email the policy home to parents.

1. It is not enough that students know the policy exists inside the classroom, let parents know what their kids will be held accountable to so they have the ability to support similar parameters for access to technology.

Avoid the consequence of taking away the chromebook.

1. For the chromebooks to be an effective, transformative tool in the classroom, students need to use them.  The chromebooks should not be a novelty, a movie Friday, or a reward, they should be similar to a pencil, paper, or school book.  Would you take that away from a student for a day, week, or semester?  Find a way to discipline students without taking away the device.
2. Come up with a progression of discipline.  In my class, there was a progression of consequence.  First, warning.  Second, warning and email/call home.  Third, warning, email/call home, and detention. Etc.

Parental contact early and often is important with technology implementations.

1. This is often though of a best practice, so nothing new, but the more contact you have with the parents and the more you remind them of the expectations and how their sons/daughters are meeting them the more supportive they will be of the consequences.

Its OK for students to have them out and not use them.

1. Personally, I had students get out chromebooks every day, even if I was not planning on using them.  Students would ask if they could do certain tasks on the chromebooks or ask to look things up on the internet.  Little by little, they became a larger part of the class.
2. Chromebooks do not take a lot of time to power on.  Have students get them at the beginning of the period and put them away at the end of the day.  This will help with transitions between activities.  Remember, a closed chromebook is logged out and they will power on very quickly.