BCSC - BRING YOUR OWN DEVICE (BYOD)
Opportunity for Students and Staff
What is the “D” in BYOD?For the purposes of BYOD, “Device” means a privately owned wireless and/or portable electronic piece of equipment that includes laptops, notebook, netbooks, tablets/slates, iPodTouches, some e-Readers, cell and smart phones. (In order for a device to have seemless wireless connectivity it will need to be capable of operating at both 2.4 and 5GHz.)
Why Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) at a participating BCSC school? BCSC believes that 21stCentury instruction is necessary for 21st Century learning. All members of our learning community hold the responsibility to value technology and achieve technological proficiency to prepare students for future jobs, which currently may not exist. Schools must challenge students with rigorous, personalized academic experiences, foster innovation and creativity, and embrace emerging technologies. In a 21st Century learning environment, students actively engage in a cohesively integrated curriculum, access information and apply it in solving authentic problems. Our students are living in a world where they are used to having immediate access to information anytime and anywhere. Many students have personally-owned devices in their pockets that can be used to allow them to learn in their own style and at their own pace. With digital learning, our goal is to have every student access high quality learning content.
BCSC BYOD FAQs – Parents
What if my child’s device is stolen or damaged? What recourse can I take?
Students bring electronic communication devices to school at their own risk, just like any other personal items. The school will not be held responsible if an electronic device or other item is lost, stolen or misplaced. Some devices have a device locator; it is recommended that you enable this feature if possible. Is my child required to use the school's wireless network or can they use their own 3G or 4G data plan?
The school's wireless network provides many advantages, including content filtering, printing, connection speed. Students who use their own data plan do so at their own risk and are expected to adhere to the student handbook. My child is bringing a device to school for instructional purposes. Will they have access to things they normally do with district equipment?
Your child will have access to any of the web-based software the school currently uses (databases, library search tools, etc.) Software may run differently on different devices for varying reasons. As a parent am I required to add additional software (virus protection, filter, tracking device, etc.) to my child’s device?
Virus protection for PC’s is required. Device location software is not required but is always a good idea. How will my sons/daughters device be used in the classroom?
Schools must challenge students with rigorous, personalized academic learning experiences that foster innovation and creativity. Students will engage in a cohesively integrated curriculum, access information, and apply it to solve authentic problems in a collaborative manner.
BCSC BYOD FAQs – Students I don’t have my own electronic communication device to bring to school. Will I be penalized or miss out on instruction?
No, it is not mandatory for students to bring a device, even if they do own one. BCSC provides a laptop to every student as part of its 1:1 initiative, so students will not miss out on instruction. I need to save my work in my network folder. Why can’t I access this resource? Outside of the BCSC network, you will not see your network folder, so you will need to save your work in another place. Some options include a flash drive, on your own hard drive, or a Cloud Storage service such as DropBox, or GoogleDrive. You may access your network folder (e-locker) from home by using NetStorage. I need to print the assignment I just completed, why is there no printer when I try this?
Like the network folders, printers are networked differently in the school and will not be available when you log in to the BYODnetwork at this time. Some network solutions include saving it to a flash drive or printing it from home or another school computer. Keep in mind that using school printers in the classroom or other learning spaces is at the discretion of the teacher or other school administrator. My device was stolen when I brought it to school. Who should I contact about this?
Your school is not responsible for the theft of a device, nor are they responsible for any damage done to the device while at school. Any time a theft occurs, you should contact a dean to make him/her aware of the offense. Bringing your own devices to school can be useful; however, some risks are involved as well. It is always a good idea to record the device’s serial number to have in case of theft. Why am I filtered on my own computer? Shouldn’t I be able to see what I want to on my own device?
Internet filtering is a requirement of all public schools. The Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA) requires all network access to be filtered regardless of the device you use to access it while in a public school. You own your device, but the network you’re using belongs to the school and Internet access will be filtered. Am I still held accountable for the Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) I receive at the beginning of the school year even though this is my personal device?
Yes, students using a personally owned device are subject to the BCSC Acceptable Use Policy and the Device User Agreement.
PLEASE NOTE: BYOD devices will need to be both 2.4 and 5GHz capable to have seamless wireless connectivity while at BCSC due to the capacity of our wireless radios. Some areas will be covered by 2.4 and some by 5. | 
