Over a recent long weekend, my computer broke. Because I have a school-issued laptop, I wasn’t allowed to get it fixed outside of Shorecrest, so I had no replacement, and therefore had a barrier to completing my homework.

     Last year, a new school-issued laptop policy was implemented in the Shorecrest Upper School, leaving students with many divisive opinions. 

     Director of Technology and Media Services Anna Baralt tried to explain some of the reasons behind the change. “A lot of parents were really concerned about what their students were accessing on the device.” She added, “We were having issues of equitable access, not all students having the device they needed to be successful.”

     While these reasons are valid, school-issued laptops may not be the best solution.

     Little positive results have come out of the first issue. Shorecrest students have still been seen gaming and getting otherwise distracted on their computers.  

     App restrictions also continue to be an issue, especially regarding the approval process before downloading educational apps. Freshman Ryan Flugel, said that what annoyed him the most was  “Definitely, definitely, using app restrictions because there are certain things that I would like to have like Excel or Desmos.”

       As for financial issues, freshman Elli Beatty said, “Since we are paying so much money, we should be able to have access to everything because we are paying for the whole laptop, not just part of it.”

     It’s difficult to find other solutions for students who can’t afford the necessary technology for Shorecrest, but it is likely that the school’s scholarship and financial aid programs could cover the technology costs for students in need of financial assistance.

     An important benefit to Shorecrest’s school-issued laptop policy is the loaner program, where students can request a loaner laptop if their device is broken. Unfortunately, students can only get loaners during the school day, which can cause difficulty if one’s laptop breaks over the weekend, like mine did.

     High school is stressful enough; I don’t want to deal with my brand-new laptop breaking down and not being able to fix it.

     The most hated part of all, though, is: the case. The school-issued laptops happen to feature an incredibly large case protecting—in all its glory—a brand-new Apple Macbook. Beatty agreed. She said, “My biggest complaint about my laptop is the case. I think it’s ugly.” 

     The overall problem of the school-issued laptops roots in something many people have expressed. Flugel said, “When you buy a laptop, you are buying it for all of the apps and no limitations, so when you receive a laptop you pay for with limitations on it, you basically paid for the whole laptop when you’re only getting half the benefits.”