MacBook Changes

By: Caleb Daniels

MacBooks. A useful tool for students to turn in assignments and keep updated on schoolwork. MacBooks. A right that has been taken away from Cal Young students. MacBooks. A controversial topic. 

Even though some people are enjoying (or tolerating) this new system, most people are not. This is why I think that students should have more access to MacBooks. Nearly 75% of CY students that took a MacBook survey said that they didn’t like this new system. Even some people who said they were fine with having to log in to their computers in almost every class said it was tedious and not convenient. 

One of the many reasons that students said they wanted a change was the time it takes to log in/out of the Chrome profile and Canvas, which leaves less time for classwork. This system also makes student’s accounts more vulnerable if they forget to log out.

Another reason to have more access to MacBooks is responsibility. If students are not carrying around a computer, they are going to be unprepared for high school. High schoolers still have personal MacBooks that can be taken home. If middle schoolers do not have the opportunity to be responsible for their MacBooks, the inexperience means more damage to computers in high school, which ultimately means more cost for 4J. 

Turning in assignments is yet another difficulty with the new MacBook system. If a class does not finish an assignment on time, they have to take extra steps to save it. If there isn’t time for that, they have to redo it. Every time a student logs out, their work and open tabs get deleted, so they can’t continue working even if they have more time later. This can be stressful, and more stress is the last thing a middle schooler needs with other activities going on. 

While more damage might happen if MacBooks are carried around, there are still the black cases that got used for a few months and are in storage, collecting dust. If one student damages a MacBook now, other students will have their learning impaired until it gets fixed. Some teachers fear there will be more gaming if students have more access, but they don’t know that it’s still happening. One teacher reports that she still sees games being played, but it’s impossible to monitor without Apple classroom because logging out deletes the profile.

Many students agree that there should be more access to MacBooks, and one way to fix this problem is to have one for each person that they pick up in the morning from their advisory teacher. Then, after sixth period, they can drop it off to charge.

We need a change. It is time for students to have more access to MacBooks.