When underclassmen entered Milton High School on Wednesday, August 27th, many brought their personal devices as a result of a new computer policy. However, some have encountered issues with getting a chromebook from the school, several not having a device for over two weeks of learning. Exacerbating this fact, student and parental confusion arose regarding school communication.

Over the summer, Milton updated their policy to allow rising 9th and 10th graders to use their personal devices for school work. Previously, only 11th and 12th graders had been able to use personal devices, whereas underclassmen were required to use a school-managed devices.

The new policy primarily resulted from an issue with MCAS last year. Many underclassmen were already using their personal devices, leaving their school-issued devices at home. Without regular use, these devices would miss several key updates, resulting in MCAS delays.

The difficulties with Chromebook distribution largely resulted from a form sent out in PowerSchool that requested parent or guardian signatures in order for their child to receive a computer.

“There was a form, The Chromebook Loan Agreement, that was put in Powerschool, and there were a lot of emails sent, about par-

ents needing to sign that,” said Library Media Specialist Janice Alpert. “If the form was not signed, that delayed things.”

Although this form seemed simple, several problems emerged. One of the main issues was that in order for this form to be filled out, the internet was needed, along with a computer. Students who did not have reliable internet access at home had to go to the Milton Public Library or another location with accessible internet. This can be extremely difficult for those without licenses, or who live far away from a computer or internet connection.

Furthermore, some freshmen who already had computers from middle school tried to get a computer from the library when they already had one at home. “The other issue was that even if a parent signed the Chromebook loan agreement, if the student had another Chromebook from the middle school, then they weren’t issued a Chromebook,” said Alpert.

“Students would come to me and say, ‘I didn’t get a Chromebook.’ and I would check, and their parent would have signed the loan agreement, but what had happened was when they did that the I.T. department emailed the student back and said, ‘We see that you signed the Chromebook loan agreement, but you will not be issued a Chromebook because according to our records, you still have this [Chromebook] from the middle school.”

In addition to students keeping their Chromebooks from middle school, many students missed important emails, creating further issues. Alpert said, “The problem was that when I would email or talk to the tech department, they said it happened many, many times, where I would ask the student to bring up their email, and they never read that email from the tech department.” Many teachers in the beginning of the year introduced the idea of checking emails daily if possible. This way students will be able to stay on top of work and possible conflicts, such as the computer issue.

With these issues arising, Alpert is focused on the future. What will this policy look like next year? Alpert said, “I am taking many, many notes. I have a whole Google Doc of what I thought went well, what I thought didn’t go well. Ultimately, there are many people working on this, the tech department, and I think that, yes, we don’t have a set like system yet ready to go, but the principal and the technology person -- and I’m sure I’ll be a part of it -- we are going to compare our notes and figure out what can we do better next time.” Even though no plan has been formalized for next year, the tech department and Alpert are beginning to come up with ways to avoid delays like these.

Aside from conflicts and issues and of course, emails, the tech team has kept their heads high, and are all working extremely hard at fixing issues that are still persistent.