• Technology touches almost every part of our lives.

• Technology in the hands of every student can serve as an equalizer, providing all students with access to information and tools that empower them as learners.

• Technology in the hands of every student can increase student engagement and thus student performance, satisfaction, and interest in school.

• Technology in the hands of every student can change the way teachers teach, offering educators effective ways to reach different types of learners and assess student understanding through multiple means.

• Technology in the hands of every student can better equip the workers of tomorrow to investigate and solve realworld challenges similar to those they will experience in the workplace.

• Technology in the hands of every student is one of the largest paradigm shifts in teaching and learning to be experienced by today’s educators.

• Effective implementation of a plan to place technology in the hands of every student requires careful planning with a large emphasis on professional development for teachers as they begin their journey down the road to personalized learning in a 1:1 environment.

• Technology infrastructure must be designed and implemented in a manner to allow the seamless implementation of an environment where personalized learning thrives in the Darlington County School District classrooms.

Darlington County School District views the use of digital resources as central to the delivery of its educational program and expects that all students will use digital resources as an essential part of their learning experiences. It is the policy of Darlington County School District to maintain an environment that promotes ethical and responsible conduct in all digital resource activities. With this privilege and extraordinary opportunity to explore resources come responsibilities for the parent and for the student. During student registration and each subsequent yearly update, you are given the opportunity to view the Student/Parent Responsible Use Agreement and during these processes you acknowledge that you understand and accept the information in this document.

1. All students are allowed access to digital resources unless the school is notified in writing by the parent/guardian.

2. All users of the district network and equipment must comply at all times with Darlington County School District policies IJNDB (Use of Technology Resources in Instruction) , IJNDB-E(5) (Digital Citizenship Contract) and IJNDB-E(6) (Digital Rights). These policies can be found at http://www.darlington.k12.sc.us/about_us/policies .

3. Laptops, iPads and all technology equipment associated with the device are on loan to students and remain the property of Darlington County School District.

4. All users are accountable to all school, district, local, state, and federal laws.

5. All use of the technology equipment and network must support education.

6. Students and families must follow all guidelines set forth in this document and by district staff.

7. All rules and guidelines are in effect before, during, and after school hours for all district laptops, iPads and technology equipment whether on or off the school campus.

8. All files stored on district equipment or on the network are property of the district and may be subject for reviewing and monitoring.

9. The term “equipment” or “technology” refers to laptops, iPads, batteries, power cord/chargers and bag/cases/covers. Each piece of equipment is issued as an educational resource. The conditions surrounding this equipment can be equated to those of a textbook or a school issued calculator.

10. Students are expected to keep the equipment in good condition. Failure to do so will result in bills for repair or replacement.

11. Students are expected to report any damage to their device as soon as possible. This means no later than the next school day.

12. Students who identify, or know about a security problem are expected to convey the details to their teacher without discussing it with other students.

13. Students are expected to notify a staff member immediately if they come across information, images, or messages that are inappropriate, dangerous, threatening, or make them feel uncomfortable.

14. All users are expected to follow existing copyright laws and educational fair use policies.

15. Students may only log in under their assigned Darlington County School District username. Students will not share their password with other students at any time.

16. Students may not loan equipment to any other person for any reason as students are held financially responsible for any loss of components.

17. Any failure to comply with the rules as outlined in this handbook may result in disciplinary action. Darlington County School District may remove a user’s access to the network without notice at any time if the user is engaged in any unauthorized activity.

18. Darlington County School District reserves the right to confiscate the equipment at any time.