[fnordpiglet]

Sadly a lot of kids only have one portal to the internet and that’s through a school device.

Otherwise the advice should be, as you said, to never use a school device for anything not explicitly required by the school. But when there’s no other route, surveilled access is better than none, I guess?

It’s a tough quandary though - schools can be held liable, at least socially so if not legally, if kids use school provided devices for all the things kids use devices for that they shouldn’t. Meeting sexual predators, bullying, etc. Many parents are technically incapable of monitoring their online activity, others too busy. Schools are being put in a weird spot of being access providers to an adult world online, not just educators.

I’ll wager a lot of school surveillance started with parents demanding it.

It’s a tough subject, I don’t have the answer. My intuition tells me schools shouldn’t be involved in access OR monitoring, but I also understand the “digital divide” isn’t just a media term. A lot of pretty smart kids live in a pretty neglected context, and without access to sources of fact like Wikipedia or sources of dubious plagiarism like ChatGPT (tongue in cheek), they’re at a structural disadvantage that can’t be overcome through hard work alone.

[SoftTalker]

Or they could just use paper and books and avoid the whole morass.

There is zero need to be using "devices" in schools at least until High School, and I'd question even then.

[fnordpiglet]

Except they can’t control the fact that wealthier kids will have access to devices that give them Wikipedia and ChatGPT and other online knowledge sources. Being able to tell ChatGPT “explain to me the Byzantine empires history” then interrogate it on fine points to prep to write an essay in immeasurably more powerful than “here’s a middle school textbook good luck understanding the nuances.” This puts the kids without a device at a structural disadvantage, a more steep disadvantage than they’re already at in society.

Finally, there’s an idea of digital literacy - the ability to use these tools to your advantage, and to navigate with sophistication the mental crack of algorithmic personalization. They will have a device at some point, and being taught at a younger age to be skeptical of mental crack might help weaken its hold (still to be seen!)

[SoftTalker]

Wealthier kids have always had and always will have advantages like that. Wealthier kids probably also have their own room and a quiet organized place to do homework. They've probably been encouraged to read and been provided with books and other enrichment opportunities. I think most teachers know who these kids are and and know if they are turning in their own work or not.

[fnordpiglet]

I’m not talking about ChatGPT writing an essay for you. ChatGPT is also a pretty good teacher in itself, and can help you learn many topics and subjects by providing direct access to a tutor on most topics. Wikipedia is the only encyclopedia available, more or less.

While schools can’t give you a good family or a nice house to study in, they certainly can give you an iPad.

[TheHappyOddish]

I can't speak for your area of the world, but every even vaguely metro or suburban area of Australia has public libraries with quiet spaces to work/study, free internet and free computers to use if you don't BYO. Most run digital literacy classes, and a number are even starting to do little cost-price cafe setups.

Whilst being wealthy is an advantage, it's certainly not the gap it once was.

[ndsipa_pomu]

It can work out cheaper to provide digital devices than providing plenty of books and of course they're a lot more flexible.

Modern society is of course dominated by technology, so there's a strong argument for getting all kids to have experience in using it.