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What is BYOD? BYOD or BYOT as it is also known, simply means Bring Your Own Device or Technology. In regards to education, it means that students are able to bring their own mobile devices to school (i.e smartphones, tablets, notebooks etc) that are capable of connecting to the internet. As many schools are unable to afford computers or tablets for each student, even with dropping prices, BYOD is an alternative that allows students to use technology for educational purposes. This approach may raise many questions, in addition of promising benefits. Will teachers accept this change? What do you do about children who don t have devices? Is your broadband strong enough? This white paper should help you understand the concept further and answer some of the questions that you may have. BYOD Continued In classrooms that use the concept of BYOD, multiple and varying devices are used to help students complete tasks. Students may use one device for example a camera phone, and then use their laptop or ipad to write the context around it via a learning platform. Alternatively, other students may facetime with peers in other classrooms to work on collaborative projects, or use videos and upload them to their VLE to share with other class members. Students could also continue to use their devices outside of school time, checking on grades, exam results, comments from teachers and work on collaborative projects. The ways in which schools build their BYOD policy can be just as varied as the number and type of devices used. Some schools allow devices to be used all the time; in classrooms, corridors, in working time and in free time. Others however, prefer mobile devices to be switched off at all times other than the times that they are using them for educational purposes. Some have strict guidelines dictating what devices can be brought in, e.g. no smartphones or tablets, just laptops. Whichever type of policy you choose to implement, make sure you don t segment children who may not have access to these devices.
8 Benefits of BYOD 1. Engage students As students use technology on a day to day basis, it would be beneficial to use devices that they are familiar with and are actively wanting to use. This will increase the level of engagement as the students themselves will want to learn in a way that is fun for them. They can also bring the skills and tools that they have learnt outside the classroom, into the classroom. 2. Increases collaboration The use of technology is fantastic for collaboration, both with students who are enrolled to same school and those students who are in schools all over the world. With software such as facetime, Skype and of course learning platforms, collaboration couldn t be much easier. It allows students to come together, discuss, plan and complete work together - no longer having an excuse of not being able to get together. 3. Saves money With students bringing in their own devices to use, it means that schools won t have to pay for laptops or computers for each and every pupil. Further to that, with learning resources available online and that can uploaded to a schools e-learning platform this means that there is no longer a need to pay for new textbooks that could become out date pretty quickly. 4. One-to-one computing BYOD allows each student to have access to a computer/mobile device. As many schools do not have the budget or resource to provide one-to-one computing, this concept facilitates this lack of funding. It would mean that students would be able to access the resources they need for work or complete the tasks that are asked of them online, rather than either having to share, or wait until they have a specific ICT lesson. 5. Access anywhere and anytime Mobile devices with internet access mean that students can access work, revision and resources anytime and anywhere. This now provides an easy alternative to completing tasks away from school. For example, if a child had been set homework to be completed over the weekend, yet they had to stay at a relatives - instead of them having to pack all their textbooks and research they could just take their tablet or laptop. This would allow them to complete their homework at a time and place to suit them.
6. Creating lifelong learning In the past schools stuck to a rigid time frame, for example 9am till 3pm. This gave students a specific time frame to feel begrudging towards school. However, with the use of technology within education this blurs the harsh lines, as students will have access to the school community anytime and anywhere. This not only reduces the bad perception of school for some, but increases skills that will be used in the working world, whilst creating curious learners. 7. Increased performance It has been found that students who are more engaged and motivated are more likely to be successful learners. Mobile devices appear to increase engagement and therefore a correlation could be assumed between increased performance and use of mobile devices. 8. Creative teaching and learning As students can draw on their own experience of mobile devices, it means that unlike schools that have the same software, students are able to create assignments and produce work with different tools. This therefore means that work can be truly individual and more creative, both in the way that teachers set the task but equally how the student completes the task. Also with mobile learning and e-learning these provide an outlet for teachers to be more creative. As they have more resources available to them and knowing that students have access to the internet and a creative tools, this opens up a whole new world of assessments and tasks. Are you ready for BYOD? When looking at BYOD, consider what your goals are and what you wish to achieve from it. If you re taking the idea to the headteacher or governors you need to know why you want to do it. Don t just say because everyone else is, that isn t a valid reason and won't go down well. You need to consider many things before implementation, as each school is individual and has different requirements. Consider the following: Do you have policies in place that allow students to use devices at certain times of the day or in certain areas of the school? What percentage of students are likely to have a device they can bring in? Will your teachers support moving to BYOD? Do you have a large,secure WiFi that can serve the additional devices you will see with BYOD? If not can you afford an upgrade? How will you help staff adapt their teaching style to make best use of a BYOD environment?
Conclusion As mobile technology becomes more integrated into our day to day lives, its transition into education is inevitable and expected. The question is however, how to best provide access for students. Schools that are able to provide devices such as laptops, may find that tool unsuitable for all task types. Whilst those students who bring their own device(s) may find it easier to use and adapt the tools that they use on a daily basis. Whether or not your school wants to implement BYOD, the questions raised in this white paper will give you food for thought as to what tools and devices could be used in the classroom. About Webanywhere Since 2003, we ve provided website services and e-learning solutions to help schools communicate, collaborate and promote themselves online. As a provider of websites, learning platforms, design services and e-learning content, we re also recognised by leading organisations. We re an approved supplier to the UK Government Procurement Service, a Moodle partner, a Mahara partner and a Google Apps Authorised Reseller. For more information on Webanywhere or to get the latest education news, advice and tips via email, please get in touch. Contact details Telephone: 01535 604026 Email: free-guides@webanywhere.co.uk Web: