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To paraphrase Marc Prensky from his collection of essays From Digital Natives to Digital Wisdom: Hopeful Essays for 21st Century Learning: “The easiest, executable solution to our education problems today “is to change what goes on in our classrooms.” We need to move from teacher-centered and teacher dominated learning models to more personal, student-centered learning models. In the process, we will do what Prensky calls “Making Education Real” for our students.

Enough of the rhetoric and cheap talk. What does it really mean to make education and learning real in the classroom? In his essay, Prensky offers “5 Things Teachers Can Do at the Beginning of the Year to Make Education Real for Their Students.” I am going to modify that just a bit a here to capture what I think are the “5 Things Teachers Can Do to Make Learning Real in Their Classrooms.”

• Get to know your students. And this does not mean their proficiency levels and past test scores. That information is important, but if you want to make learning real for your students in your classroom, you better connect with them. Connecting means learning about what they are passionate about. It means learning who they are as persons. It means connecting with them on a personal level. For learning to be real in your classroom, you have to see students as real people, with real passionate interests and needs. No room for standardization here.
• Reduce the amount of time you spend “telling” in your classroom and engage students in more “partnering activities” that allow students to pursue their own passions. Granted, it is a challenge when there are “Adopted Standards” waiting to be tested, but so many students don’t learn at all, much less deeply with lecture and “sit-n-get” modes of instruction. As Prensky notes, “Capitalize on students’ 21st century abilities to learn on their own.” Give them opportunities to engage in the kind of learning they are wired to do instead of forcing them to learn in an incompatible manner.
• Facilitate learning by guiding students through their learning. Teachers can help students focus on what’s important and what’s next. They can help them make the most of 21st century learning tools to engage in content and skills. This means stepping out from the front of the classroom and standing beside or sitting with students as they learn. It means letting goal of being the center of the classroom.
• Foster global connections with peers and experts. Teachers should assist students in connecting with other students globally. They should help students connect with experts that can help them learn. In effect, teachers should help students create their own Professional Learning Networks (PLNs). Then, they should help students care for and grow that network according to their learning needs.
• Motivate students by allowing them to use their 21st century devices in their learning. This means setting aside the impulse to block the use of cell phones in the classroom. This means providing students with wireless access in the school building in the form of Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) initiatives and 1:1 Technology initiatives. It means engaging students in the use of social media and other technologies rather than blocking them on school networks. We can make learning real by simply allowing students to use the devices of learning they use outside our school walls.

If we really want to change education and learning for our students, let’s change what is happening in classrooms, and our buildings. Let’s make education real for our students by moving from “Telling” classrooms to “Partnering” classrooms that enable students to engage in learning.

While there is some debate about whether a BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) Policy perpetuates inequities and the technology gap, school districts in times of tightening budgets and limited resources are looking for cost-effective ways to increase student access to technology. While BYOD should not be a substitution for adequately funding access to technology for all students, it is a means by which we do not have to ask students to unplug when their walk through our school building doors. But in providing this increased level of access, there are areas of consideration before opening the WiFi to student use, and here’s a short list of 5 considerations for implementing a BYOD policy for your school district.

1. Be aware of the technical requirements needed for providing BYOD in your school or district.  For example, make sure your hardware and software is prepared to handle things like the sudden increase of IP addresses with all the new devices logged on to your network. Also, how will the sudden increase in devices affect bandwidth? Taking stock of your network to see if BYOD is going to enhance access not degrade access is important.

2. Set up general guidelines for BYOD access.  These guidelines are important. They let students know that using their own devices is welcome, but instruction and educational use is the primary reason for that access. Here are some key things to consider when setting up these guidelines for a BYOD policy:

• Clear statement in policy that use of a device during the school day is clearly at the discretion of teachers and staff. They are to put the devices away when asked to do so.
• Clear instructions to students that using devices during the instructional day is in support of their educational activities. Personal access for personal reasons is secondary.
• Make clear to students that their use of a device must not disrupt the learning of others.
• Clear statement in policy that use of a device on the school WiFi might mean their device could be subject to search and/or seizure under certain circumstances.
• Clear statement that use of a device under the school or district’s BYOD policy requires the student's adherence to the school or district’s acceptable use policy.
• Clear statement regarding what kinds of resources students will have access to using their own devices under the BYOD policy.

3. Provide statements of clear consequences for student failure to follow the school or district’s acceptable use policy and BYOD guidelines. Consequences could be the loss of access for a period of time.

4. Clear description of the procedures students must follow in order to optain access under the BYOD policy. This tells students clearly what they need to do in order to obtain their access.

5. Clear disclaimers regarding what the school is responsible for and not responsible for. For example:

• Access to the WiFi is for Internet access only. No access to other network resources is provided.
• School district IT department is not responsible for the maintenance and repair to personal devices used under the BYOD policy.
• The school district is not responsible to damaged, lost, or stolen devices used under the BYOD policy.

It is vital that schools and school  districts seeking to implement a BYOD solution make sure they maintain the integrity of the computer networks and provide some level of safety as specified under CIPA (Children’s Internet Protection Act). A BYOD properly and effectively implemented can create an environment where students can remain plugged in and engage in using their own devices as 21st century learning tools.