smart devices & ONLINE SAFETY

Dear Parent/Carer, 

I am writing with reference to the matter of ‘smart devices’ in school. There have been many discussions at parent level, school level and between the two (Parent Council) as to the suitability, value and risk of these devices being in school, and I appreciate that there are many views – with limited consensus. I appreciate that the debate goes much wider than Law PS and, while there is a national statement around this, individual local authorities are engaging in consultations in an effort to seek consensus. I understand that North Berwick parents (primary and secondary) will have a further opportunity to share their views before the Easter holiday.

In the meantime, I would like to reiterate the position and guidance previously shared with parents earlier in the session, and also currently on our school website:

https://sites.google.com/edubuzz.org/lawps/about-our-school/smart-devices-online-safety

The school very much promotes a smart device free environment in school. While I understand that some families will have strong feelings about this and many will also have good reasons for their child to have such a device, I would encourage an approach that minimises the presence of such devices in school as much as possible. There are good reasons for this: risk of distraction from learning, risk of theft/loss or damage; and the matter of safeguarding/child protection. This latter aspect is the most important element from the school’s perspective, and something I’m sure that all families would share. Any device that can access the internet (unsupervised) presents a risk. Any device which can take photographs/video or sound recordings also presents a risk. Any device which can make calls/texts can be used irresponsibly. The school has experienced these threats to safeguarding when pupils have taken a smart device into school and not observed the protocols we have asked to be observed, i.e. the ‘smart functionality’ being disabled or handed into class teachers. We prefer that any devices brought in are automatically handed into respective class teachers, however we have had scenarios where devices are not handed in and are not disabled. This presents a potential risk to everyone in the school, and it is something that is very difficult for school staff to deal with. We rely on cooperation from families and individuals to make this happen. We cannot ‘search’ bags or coats to check – this is a violation of rights and also a practical impossibility. It is also unrealistic to expect staff to be able to have the technical capacity to know if a device has been disabled given the complexity and variety of devices.

To this end, I would ask that only in the most essential circumstances are pupils permitted to take smart devices into school. If they do, please ensure that they are either disabled at home, have appropriate filters/controls in place or remind your child to hand the device directly to the class teacher at the start of the day – to be returned at the end of the day.

 Thank you for your cooperation and support in this matter.

 Ronnie Taylor