Empowering students with BYOD

As a national leader in the use of educational technology, the UGDSB is committed to supporting creative and innovative learning. With teacher approval, students may use their personal mobile devices for instructional purposes during class time. This is especially important for students who rely on technology to access curriculum, communicate their ideas and to overcome individual learning needs.

The UGDSB provides a stable network, rich digital content and tools to support learning from school and home. Students have access to a variety of resources and tools to support their learning anywhere, anytime, at any pace and individual path.

When students use their own technology as part of an enriched academic experience, they engage more deeply and actively in the learning process. Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) empowers students to become the experts with the device they have and to customize it to their learning needs. If the devices the students use beyond the school day are the same ones they use for school, the students can seamlessly switch from personal use to learning anytime, anywhere. The learning activities on the device are accessible to the students 24-hours-a-day, 7-days-a-week.

The UGDSB recognizes the critical role that parents play in educating their children on the appropriate use of mobile devices and in monitoring the use of these devices as today’s responsible digital citizens. This partnership of parents and schools is essential in achieving success in ensuring appropriate use of technology.

Some tools available on mobile devices allow them to be used by parents as tracking devices to monitor a child’s activities and locations throughout the day. It is important to note that while some of these applications may serve legitimate purposes they can also be used in an intrusive manner. The privacy, safety and dignity of others could be violated by the inappropriate use of audio and video recording devices. Mobile devices may not be used to monitor or record audio while on school or board premises. Mobile devices may be used for recording purposes for instructional use only with teacher approval.

It is the expectation of the UGDSB that when approved for use by a teacher, mobile devices may be used when they are deemed not to interfere with a student’s personal learning or the learning of others. They are not to be used in private areas such as locker rooms and washrooms nor are they to be used where it interferes with privacy or safety of staff, students or others.

For more information on BYOD, including information about privacy, digital citizenship and safety, and frequently asked questions, click here.