BYOD ( Bring Your Own Device ) Simplified

www.educatorstechnology.comAll that teachers need to knowabout this new trend called BYODMohamed Kharbach 12

www.educatorstechnology.comAbout The AuthorMohamed ( Med ) Kharbach is a Canadian Certified Teacher working atthe Halifax Regional School board. He has been teaching for nine yearsnow. He is also a master student in Mount Saint Vincent University,department of education in Halifax. He is working on a thesis about theeducational use of emerging technologies in education.Mohamed is also a SEO ( Search Engine Optimizer ) and web designer.He is the editor and owner of Educational Technology and MobileLearning where he writes about web 2.0 revisions and provides tips forboth students and teachers on how to better implement technology intheir classrooms.You can contact Med at : med@educatorstechnology.com

www.educatorstechnology.comIntroductionBYOD is the catch phrase in the 2012 educational technology spheres.This acronym stands for " Bring Your Own Device ", I am pretty sure youmight have heard of this new trend because wherever you turn youhear people talking about embracing it. I actually have been reading alot about it to the point that I deem it important that I share with yousome of what I understood from BYOD .Bring Your Own Device or BYOT ( Bring Your Own Technology ) hasstarted in the business world with corporations encouraging theiremployees to bring their own technology devices such as laptops touse in the work place. This was a strategy to cut down on technologycosts and spending because of the financial crisis the world haswitnessed in the recent couple of years. The strategy worked quite welland without even knowing it, it moved to education and so manyschool districts are embracing it.

www.educatorstechnology.comBYOD in education refers to students bringing their own technologydevices ( smartphones, tablets, and laptops. ) to school foreducational uses. This was initially started by college students, but itsoon spread to K-12 education. Schools that used to depend ongovernment funds to provide technology that students would need forthe school day , are now turning that responsibility to the parents byasking them to purchase the technology devices needed for schools,which, fortunately enough, most students actually own. This would cutdown on schools huge yearly technology expenditure. But thepertinent question here is : does this BYOD work ? Does it improvestudents learning ?Advantages of BYOD in educationI know there are many disadvantages to BYOD but let us be optimisticand look at the filled side of the cup. BYOD has several pluses ineducation such as :1- Education is intertwined with finance and this is clearly visible in caseof financial crisis when districts start cutting down budgets. Studentssuffer because they are deprived of certain things they have taken forgranted in their learning. Let me give you an example , here in NovaScotia ( Canada ) the provincial government has made several cuts inthe budget it spends on education. These cuts have a direct impact onthe quality of education students receive. Imagine with me studentswith permanent disabilities who used to be assisted by PSAs ( PersonalStudents Assistants ) will now find themselves alone struggling to learnon their own because many of these PSAs will be laid off. Teachers cannot do anything about it because students with special needs need a lot

www.educatorstechnology.comof attention and care which teachers alone could notafford especially in a large classroom with 26 students . The sameapplies to technology expenditure at schools ; it will also be affectedbut with the use of BYOD strategy a lot of education dollars will besaved to be spent on other resources. So students bring their owndevices, schools pay for the expenditure of the textbooks, apps, andother online programs.2- Having technology everywhere in the classroom and not only in thecomputer lab is an amazing experience for both teachers and students.Learning can be largely enhanced by these technology devices studentsuse. We will have a multi-modal learning style or what is technicallycalled Blended Learning where students can learn using : e-textbooks,videos, educational apps, online research, and many other digitallearning tools ( photography, word processing, desktop publishing...ect).3- The 21st century education requires a set of digital skills that traditional instructionalone could not provide. BYOD can help students acquire these skills and elicit moreengagement and motivation essential for the increase of the learning outcomes.

www.educatorstechnology.com4- Another advantage is that students will be able to use the same computing device inhome and in school. This means that they will have access to all the digital resourcesthat they were accessing in school at home as well.Reasons why should schools embrace BYODHere are some reasons why schools should seriously start embracingBYOD :  Today’s students are digital natives. They are born with technology and grew up using it in their everyday life. They learn and live with technology and of course they bring it to school so why not leverage its power ?  The print and technology-based learning resources the schools own are not enough to cover all students technological needs, making the shift to BYOD can save money, extend access, and improve engagement.  Students facing school bans and inhibitions find themselves forced to sneak their devices into school. A BYOD environment , on the other hand, could promote a healthy and appropriate technology use.  BYOD can help in bridging the digital gap between low income students and higher income ones. Schools can purchase enough

www.educatorstechnology.com access devices for low income students since others already can afford theirs. This will generate a flip from 3 or 4 students per computer to one or two devices per students over time  Expanded access yields expanded digital options and when every student has a full digital access , it provides the platform for improved access to effective materials , online resources and effective teachers.Myths about BYOD debunkedThere are several misconceptions and false myths about BYOD, LisaNielson ( author of Teaching Generation Text: Cell Phones to EnhanceLearning ) has written a great article debunking all these myths andproviding more resources on the importance of BYOD in education.Check out her article to learn more.Here is a list of links to important resources on BYOD. Check them outto learn more.

www.educatorstechnology.com1- Cybrary Man Links2- Seven Questions for Bringing your Own Device to School3- Web 2.0 tools for BYOD Programs4- BYOD Food for Thought

BYOD ( Bring Your Own Device ) Simplified

by Mohamed Kharbach on Jul 13, 2012

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