FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions
Can't get online outside the school building?
Make sure you authenticate your wi-fi connection. View the 3-step instructions.
General Care
Chromebooks are particularly sensitive to damage from excessive pressure on the screen. The Chromebook screen can be damaged if subjected to rough treatment. Protect the Chromebook screen by following the rules below:
Close the Chromebook screen before moving it. Do not lean on the top of the Chromebook when it is closed.
Do not place anything near the Chromebook that could put pressure on the screen. Do not poke the screen. Be careful about placing books and other items against the Chromebook in your book bag as it may be damaged.
Do not place anything on the keyboard before closing the lid (e.g. pens, pencils, or flash drives).
Clean the screen with a soft, dry cloth or an anti-static cloth.
Do not bump the Chromebook against lockers, walls, car doors, floors, etc. as it will eventually break the screen.
No food or drink is allowed next to your Chromebook while it is in use.
To conserve battery life, Chromebooks should be shut down before moving them.
Chromebooks must remain free of any writing, drawing, stickers, or labels that are not the property of the district. Chromebooks must never be left in a car or any unsupervised area.
Charging Chromebooks:
Each student is expected to bring his/her Chromebook to school every day fully charged. A fully charged Chromebook has an average battery life of 8 hours.
Students should leave their chargers at home. We will be unable to charge students' Chromebooks for them and cannot issue temporary loaners if students do forget to charge.
It is essential that students include charging their Chromebooks at home as part of their daily routine.
DO NOT CHARGE YOUR CELLPHONES ON YOU CHROMEBOOKS!
When you charge you phones using the Chromebooks it depletes the battery quickly.
Chromebook Repair Procedures, Damage, And Loss
What happens if the device is damaged?
Students are responsible for the general care of the Chromebook issued to them by the District. Chromebooks that are broken or fail to work properly must be taken to the Chromebook Helpdesk to get repaired.
Many issues with Chromebooks can be resolved with simple troubleshooting steps. Students and parents can refer to the Student Resources for a list of suggestions and simple steps that will resolve the majority of issues not relating to damage.
Damage should be reported immediately. Students should not attempt repairs themselves or take the Chromebook to a third party vendor for repair.
Updates & Installs
When a Chromebook starts up, it updates itself automatically, so it has the latest and greatest version of the Chrome operating system without you having to think about it. No need for time consuming installs, updates, or reimaging.
Students are not to download or access inappropriate material at home or at school.
Network Connectivity
Greenville County Schools makes no guarantee that their network will be up and running 100% of the time. In the rare case that the network is down, the District will not be responsible for lost or missing data.
Students will not be penalized if the network is down and a completed assignment can not be accessed for class projects, presentations, etc. as this type of network outage will affect all students and staff in the school building.
Google provides offline access to Google Docs and Google Drive for students who do not have internet access at home.
WIFI Access
Parents should contact their Internet provider on instructions for how to add the Chromebook to their wifi-network. You may also find helpful suggestions on the Google Wifi Support Page.
Will unsafe or inappropriate websites be filtered on the devices?
We do our best to ensure each student's online experience is safe. Before each Chromebook device connects to the Internet, it must pass through district network firewalls and filters. This happens whether the device is browsing on campus on school-owned networks, or off campus using another WiFi router that is providing the Internet connection. Because of security settings built into the device, it must first route its Internet connection back through our district security settings (firewalls and filters) before any website or online resource is accessible. If your child is using the Chromebook at school, at home or at a public library, it will always pass through our web filtering and network firewall system before they can see or access web content. Our web filters are programmed to block inappropriate content as much as possible.
What happens if students have been visiting inappropriate websites?
The district has access to student browsing history whether sites accessed are at school or occur at another location. Inappropriate web browsing is a violation of the district Authorized Use Policy and may result in disciplinary action.
Chromebook Procedures When There Is a Substitute
Greenville Middle Academy is a 1:1 school in which each student has a Chromebook to use for educational purposes. These Chromebooks are often used for assignments, for note taking, for project work and for assessments.
When indicated in the teacher's substitute plans, students may use their Chromebooks. If the lesson plan does not call for Chromebooks, students may not use any technology (Chromebook, laptop).