Oops...I Broke My Laptop

"I don't know how that happened"

"My mother threw my backpack on the floor"

"My brother stepped on it"

" I just turned it on and it broke"

"Someone must have broken into my locker and done that"



Laptop initiatives have a way of bringing out the best and the worst in the students who are using the laptops. Computer manufacturers lead you to believe that their laptops are virtually indestructible. Images of gorillas jumping up and down on the laptop or salesmen throwing the laptop across the floor are used to promote the toughness of the machine. But put that laptop in the hands of a student to really test its durability. No matter how much training students receive in the care and maintenance of laptops, be prepared to handle a wide range of damage or hardware malfunction during the first few months of the initiative.

There are three key components that need to be in place in order to efficiently handle damaged or broken laptops. First, the help desk system needs to be in place and functioning at the beginning of the year. Students need to know the process for reporting a broken laptop. A good help desk system allows broken laptops to be entered into the system, assigned to the appropriate team member for repair and returned in a timely fashion. Help desk systems also allow the technology team to track events in the life of an individual laptop or multiple laptops in the system to analyse trends or problems that may be occuring in multiple laptops. All computers need to be inventory tagged and assigned to a single user. This tagging system will not only allow the unit to be tracked in the help desk system, but it will also help to identify lost/found computers. Second, there needs to be a way to document the damage or the hardware problem and assign a disciplinary action or charge if appropriate. Finally, there needs to be a loaner system that allows students to have access to a laptop while theirs is being repaired.

Once you have planned for how to track repair requests, you need to actually repair the equipment. If this is going to be done in house, the technicians may need to pass manufacturer tests to become certified to do warranty work. Doing warranty work has two advantages. There will be a more timely turn around on the repair. Also, the manufacturer may pay the technician to do the warranty work, helping to cover the cost of having a certified technician in the district.

In addition to hardware damage, another common problem we have are dead batteries. Many classrooms have limited access to power outlets. Students don't always remember to charge their laptops overnight or bring their power cords with them to school. Most freshmen don't think ahead and plan times to charge up their battery during the school day. One possible solution is to purchase a battery charging station. Our school has a charging station that we keep in the library. Students bring their battery to the library for charging and sign out a spare battery. Another possibility is to purchase computer carts or set up power bar stations to keep in the study hall and cafeteria where students can plug in their laptop during non class periods. Power stations the require the student to leave their laptop plugged in pose a security challenge. These stations need to be located in areas that are supervised by adults.



Bottom line, be prepared to deal with some very interesting broken laptop stories. Use each broken laptop as a teachable moment to reemphasize the correct way to handle laptops. Hold students accountable for their actions. Reward students who are taking proper care of their equipment. The more the laptops are integrated into the learning process, the more value the students will place on having their laptop and the more aware they will be of treating their laptop with care.



Guiding Questions
At what point will students be charged for damage to their laptop?
What procedure will students follow to submit laptops for repair?
Who will be responsible for assigning discipline consequences, assessing repair cost and making sure the student has a loaner laptop?
What ongoing training/reinforcement on maintenance and care will students receive during the school year?
Where will charging stations be stationed?
Who will be doing the repair work?
If repairs will be done in district, who will be responsible for ordering parts?
If the repairs will be done in district, what training/certification will the staff need to do warranty work?
How many loaner computers will be kept on hand?
How will the loaner computers be checked out?
How will student computers be tagged so that they can be easily identified?

Welcome to Our School, Here's Your Laptop

After months of planning, the time has come to hand students their new laptops. First impressions are everything and this is the best opportunity to make the best impression on the students, parents and community. Once a date has been selected for the distribution, the laptop initiative team needs to sit down together to firm up plans for the big day. Ideally, parents and students will be involved in the distribution day. This ensures that all parties receive the same information at the same time. One of the keys to a successful laptop initiative is parent support, so keeping the parents informed and involved is important.

Because our laptops were going to be given to incoming freshmen, our team made the decision to hold a matriculation ceremony at the beginning of the school year. Matriculation is a ceremony to welcome students to an educational institution. The superintendent and building principal officially welcomed each freshmen to the high school and handed them a laptop. As students walked off the auditorium stage, they were met by their parents. We had stations set up to pay the laptop insurance fee and sign the acceptable use policy. If students were unable to pay the fee or chose to not sign the policy, the laptop was recollected and held for them until the fee was paid or paperwork completed. An additional station was set up to sell jump drives and laptop bags.

Students also participated in a one hour laptop training. Basic information on using the Ubuntu operating system, proper care of the laptop and the acceptable use policy was presented to them. Because they will be using these laptops for four years, the students needed to understand the importance of taking proper care of their laptops.

The district communications director coordinated press releases, media invitations and updates to the district website to promote the matriculation ceremony and laptop distribution. The ceremony took place a few days before the official first day of school, which gave the students a chance to spend time learning about their laptop on their own before the school year officially began.

Guiding Questions: Orientation
How will the laptops be distributed to the students?
What training will the students need in order to use/maintain the laptops?
Who will do the training?
When will the training take place?

Guiding Questions: Student Costs
What will the student cost be for the laptops?
How will the district collect any fees/payments?
How will insurance be made available for the laptops?
At what point will students have to pay repair or replacement costs?
How will the cost information be communicated with parents?

Guiding Questions: Acceptable Use Policy
What modifications will need to be made to the acceptable use policy?
How will the students be notified of the acceptable use policy?
What will be the discipline plan for violations of the acceptable use policy?
What will be the plan for students who fail to sign or refuse to sign the acceptable use policy?

Guiding Questions: New Students
How will laptops be distributed to students who transfer to the district during the year?
How will new students receive the netbook orientation?
Where will extra laptops be housed?

Guiding Questions: Public Relations/Communication
What are the academic goals for the laptop initiative?
How will the district be evaluating the impact of the laptops on student learning and success?
How can the district webpage be used to communicate information about the initiative?
How can distict communications be used to share information about the intiative?
How will information about the initiative be distributed to local media?
Who will be the district contact person to address questions/inquiries about the initiative?
How will the district promote the initiative - will advertising or "advertorials" be used to build interest in the intiative?
What role will social media play in sharing information about the initiative?