School Board Prez Questions 'Personal Electronic Device' Policy [POLL]

The Board of Education considered a new school policy at its Jan. 10 meeting that would regulate students' use of personal electronic devices, but tabled the discussion after its president raised concerns over the lack of specific definition of "personal electronic device."

The policy would have established a guideline that says "personal electronic devices that have educational applications ... shall be allowed to be used in classrooms only when they are included as part of a lesson under the direction and approval of a teacher."

However, board president John Diviney said he felt the term "personal electronic device" should be defined clearly in the policy. He said his concern was based on the idea that some devices like smartphones can connect to the internet on their own and could potentially be used to access questionable material.

"When I read [the policy], it doesn't really explicitly say what we're allowing and what we’re not allowing," he said.

Deputy superintendent Cheryl Pedisich said the policy was worded in such a way that did not prohibit the use of items like a Kindle or an iPad, "especially if a teacher felt it would be advantageous within the classroom."

"The digital world is moving at such a rapid base that we'd be changing this policy on an annual if not a biannual basis, and that was a concern that we had," Pedisich said.

Kerrin Welch-Pollera, the district's executive director of instructional technology, said a device like a smartphone could be used on the spot in a classroom with the approval of a teacher rather than bringing the class to a computer lab, or a Kindle could be used for independent reading.

"They’re not broad spread examples yet, because the policy hasn’t changed and we’re learning with it," she said. "Teachers and students are starting to experiment with real life examples ... and how we might apply it educationally for students."

Welch-Pollera said the district's own network is locked and filtered, and cannot be accessed by students on their own personal electronic devices.

While inappropriate use of the internet by a student is covered in the district's code of conduct, "with a policy like this, one should be able to get the gist of it without having to refer back to a 40-page manual," Diviney said.

The school board voted 5-0, with two members absent, to table the discussion pending further review by the policy committee, which is set to meet Tuesday. The Jan. 10 meeting marked the second time a discussion of the student personal electronic device policy was postponed; the policy was originally presented for a first reading at the Oct. 11, 2011 school board meeting.