New Computer Policy Sparks Controversy
Among many changes this school year, including a rise in national rankings, a new principal, and a few notable additions to the faculty, one of the most felt changes within the school is the new student laptop policy. Students are now no longer allowed to use their personal computers as devices inside of school. SWW’s new principal, Dr. Kimbria Little, sent out an email on August 20th announcing the policy update. Inside the email, along with information on start time, phone policy, and other first day information, was a header: “DCPS-ISSUED DEVICE”, a big change for the autonomous Walls population.
Dr. Little added in her email that using DCPS devices have ensured that “required testing applications, updates, security settings, and other assessment-related resources” can be automatically added to devices to allow preparedness for AP related uses, standardized testing, and SAT and PSAT testing. Nation-wide, devices and AI have gained traction in a debate on ethics and equity surrounding their use. This year DCPS has instituted district-wide new device and technology mandates.
Although rumors of concerns about screen mirroring, AI use, and other reasons have floated around the school, the staff weighs in on the actual basis behind the new citywide rule. Mr. Henning, one of the Health and Physical Education teachers at Walls, inputs his opinion on the new policy, “I, overall, like the policy a lot because it makes a lot of our tech work better with the computers.” He adds that when everyone has the same technology, a lot of the issues are removed and all computers are guaranteed the same level of preparation and software for student use. He also notes that it gives teachers access to Lightspeed, an app used to track students’ screens and prevent cheating on DCPS computers, across all student’s screens. “If someone wanted to cheat, they could just bring their own computer, so cheating is more accessible toward kids with wealthier families.” The policy “gets rid of some of the gap between technology and access” and using the same computers provides equitable access to technology school wide.
For a school where students enjoy lots of independence, this new policy feels restrictive to some. But, looking on the bright side, Leonardo Politi (‘30) says, “I mean, we get free computers, even if they aren't good, we still have them, and we get chargers with them, and to bring them home.” Access to technology is a luxury not every student has the privilege of, and equal access to this technology makes it more efficient for students to get their work done.
The rest of the student body’s response has been less than ecstatic, to say the least. Among many complaints, the issues of slow internet, glitchy devices, and most of all, blocked websites arise. Lila Noti (‘28) remarks, “Youtube being blocked is frustrating because I use it to watch videos about topics that I don't understand in class, or as a research tool.” Other students have the same sentiment. Saara Lee (‘29) echoes, “Most of the time I can’t access the links my teachers send me for classwork and homework.” While there is an understanding that the internet is not all educational tools, the new computers are limiting the extent to which students can effectively get work done. Even teachers have encountered issues with new restrictions on sites, having to work around them for lessons.
Soren Nguyen (‘27) and Vivian Rodgers (‘30) both bring up the issue of people buying new computers just for school. Rodgers says, “I know a lot of people who bought computers just to bring to school and kids were really upset that they can’t bring them to school anymore.” She isn't the only one. Nguyen adds, “Students who were already comfortable working on their home computer, or who invested in a new one specifically for this school year, now have to give up that familiarity and adapt to unfamiliar technology instead.” He also brings up another issue: switching between devices. “For me, the hardest part about switching is a lack of cohesion. I keep a lot of information related to school on my personal computer and a lot of those sites or apps aren’t available on school devices, which causes a disconnect and makes it harder to stay organized.” Many students still have personal computers that they do most of their work on, just no longer at school. The familiarity, ease, and access of their own device makes the new computers a hard sell. Noti (‘28) expresses her annoyance at the difficulty of adding dual enrollment classes, saying, “The GW resources don’t work well when you are signed into another Microsoft account, like on school computers.” However, students concede that the policy does make the in school environment more fair, even if out of school, home computers are still used.
The common consensus among students seems to be: the new computers don’t run like new. The disconnect is too great of an obstacle to make learning more efficient and despite the equity created with the new policy, students are not pleased. Having to navigate around glitchy browsers, blocked resources and browser windows, and more issues makes learning harder. Advantages of the new policy allows for more equitable access to technology and better protection of academic integrity, keeping Walls a productive learning environment. But, if fairness is the main goal of this policy, then maybe listening to the voices of students throughout the city is the next step.
