Parents' shopping guide for holiday tech giving

Each year for the past five years or so, I've posted a guide for parents shopping for devices for their children to use, at least in part, to help them complete school assignments. In some districts, such a device may be on the school supply list.

Once again this year, stores are adverting $40 miracle tablets and e-book readers. Smartphone screen sizes are growing. Laptops are shrinking. Chromebook popularity is soaring. Many students now have school-provided device so might a home device have different purposes?

It is in the best interest of both the families we serve and the school district itself to advise the potential gift-givers of our students what the capacities and functions of a workable device might be.  Here might be a start on a short, updated list of those capabilities. I would suggest using such a list when going to the local big box store or looking as specifications when online shopping.

The device your child needs to access and use our district resources must:

Required:

• an 802.11x wireless networking access
• a virus protection program (if it uses Windows or OS operating system)
  
• a high resolution color screen
  
• an onscreen or external keyboard or other means of entering text
• an audio port for earbuds or headphones
• 6 hour (minimum) battery life
• have a full functioning, recent web browser (Chrome or Firefox, preferred) that will allow it to access GoogleApps for Education tools and documents, Schoology, Destiny library catalog, Naviance, and the Synergy (SIS) student portal.)
• a case for protecting the device

Helpful opitions include both front and rear facing cameras, a microphone, and graphing calculator software.

This should give families a lot of flexibility - smartphones with about any OS, Chromebooks, iPods/iPads, or a full-sized laptop, should do the job.

And what, my expert friends, should be added or can be dropped from my specs???

 

See also “A Letter to Parents Shopping for Technology“  Educational Leadership, November, 2014