To refuse to sign form for DD to have a school iPad?

[user63214]

Last year DD (8) school introduced iPads which they all brought home to complete homework/ use Apps. On a number of occasions DD dropped it accidentally, forgot where is was or to charge it.
For this year they have just sent out forms saying children will receive their iPads once we have signed the form acceptability liability for any damage/loss etc. AIBU? If school decide they want to use iPads they need to accept some may be damaged. Also unsure what happens if the damage happens on school property.

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Whaaat?

An 8 year old doesn't NEED to do homework online. What a load of old bollocks.

Can kids learn to read and write and do maths/science stuff without the Internet?
Maybe read a book.

Utterly nonsensical. I'm with the OP on this one.

This is BS. The curriculum doesn’t have to be taught online. It’s in books and always has been.

At least your school covers the cost here in Australia you have to pay for one yourself and no you can't use a cheap one they don't work on the school network

YANBU. My DC (same age at the time) dropped my DH’s brand new iPad - just a simple accident - and broke the screen. It was a very expensive mistake. It’s not about being old enough to be responsible, it’s that even to adults these things can happen.

I’m also not keen on children of that age moving to devices.

All of this!

My DD’s school doesn’t have textbooks anymore. The books are online and accessed via the tablets or laptops issued by the school. Instead of buying and managing physical books, the schools buy a license for the textbooks.

they do still have physical library books. Older students often choose ebook options instead.

If they don't have one at home to use they are not going to be able to afford to replace a damaged school one either.

On a number of occasions DD dropped it accidentally, forgot where is was or to charge it.

Do you normally accept that your DC are careless with valuable equipment? Sounds like your DD needs to be taught to be more careful & responsible. It's not beyond the capacity of an 8 year old to learn that an iPad should not be dropped, kept in a regular place (does she have a desk in her bedroom?) and needs to be charged.

Some people are just more accident prone than others though and one way to manage a child’s ( or adult ) difficulties is to not let them near expensive stuff

Depends on the child.
One of mine, I'd have no problem with them looking after something like that, the other wouldn't be able to. It isn't my parenting (they are both the dc of the same 2 parents), it is the fact one has ADHD and the other doesn't.

YANBU @user63214 - I wouldn't sign it either.

I mean, I'm not a fan of homework for 8 yr olds anyway (as a parent or a teacher), but if the school wants to give out homework, it shouldn't involve having to have access to an iPad.

We refused to sign, I pointed out in the meeting that by the time they were “ours” (we had to purchase them on a school plan) they would be obsolete. It’s shit and these iPads have caused more problems at our school than they have solved.
but I guess it’s nice that the teachers can say “go to x on YouTube and watch the video” whilst they do marking or something. That was sarcasm. They’re shit

My child is ridiculously accident prone. She has an executive processing disorder and dyspraxia. She breaks things constantly. The school cases are tanks. The abuse she puts her school laptop through is epic and it is in perfect condition 3 years in. If they are not tanks, then you need to complain loudly.

we have much stricter rules for her personal devices, but we can’t really control her school computer.

Ahh ‘family computer’ took me straight back to the ‘90s 🥰😂

YANBU at all. Realistically it’s a risk giving an iPad to an 8 year old. If school were lending something that I thought was of great educational benefit to my child (like a musical instrument) I would be willing to take responsibility for it. iPads are actually a negative for the children and are often introduced more for the convenience of the school. I might reluctantly go along with it for a quiet life but I certainly wouldn’t want to be responsible for any damage. Some 8 year olds are capable of looking after delicate things but mine would need supervision.

I agree, I would not be at all happy about enforced screen time. Can you ask for homework on paper instead?

I am a teacher and there's always been the option - secondary at least - for paper homework especially where kids didn't have access to devices. I think if you do accept a school iPad though, you won't be given one without signing the liability form.

Blimey! We have grown men - engineers - at work and also both male and female staff working in a warehouse that use iPads, and guess what? It’s cheaper for us to get them ruggedised with a tough cover than let them loose without! I would think that an 8-yo would subject their devices to a similar amount of “hard use” as these workers.

I wouldn’t be signing a liability form unless the school was employing age-appropriate protection for their expensive equipment (and frankly, I would be amazed if the LEA actually purchased them: normally equipment like this is leased and is on a repair plan.)

Schools really don’t “get it” when it comes to tech, do they?

My DC school issued them in year 7.
You weren't allowed to bring your own iPad, and we paid in installments. They are penalised if they are not charged or they dont have them. I dropped my 16 year olds iPad at school the other day, on my way to work! (It was partly my fault he forgot it, because I changed his bed, and it was under the duvet and he didnt see it)

Would it be covered by your house insurance if it was at home?

Children have to learn about doing things on line, it's not like it was 20 years ago (or in my case 60+ years ago). We had to buy books!

Why is she being ridiculous? She makes a good point. If they want to introduce this kind of tech they provide it and maintain it.

Yanbu. I'd not sign either, they can accept they need to provide a way to do the homework without a school iPad, run an after school club for homework or accept it won't be done.

I had to sign pages of rules for my 11 yo. I wouldn't be keen at age 8.

We also have to pay insurance

No. You're fine to refuse. Your child won't be given an iPad to take home.

I’m a teacher and I wouldn’t sign that.
I also wouldn’t respect a school that did this.

As a supply teacher about 50% of the primary schools I teach in are now iPad schools. Each child has their own and nearly all work is done on the iPads.

A handful of kids don't take theirs home and it stays in school. They are pretty locked down, about all they can use them for is the educational apps provided. Breakages seen very rare, they've always been in sturdy cases. The things that tend to break are the pens for them (especially if the school doesn't buy decent ones). However, they can do everything with a finger instead except handwrite neatly!).

It's much easier if they can take them home, you can ensure they are charged up fully then. Otherwise there's always a queue for the classroom chargers.

I didn't sign for DS1's and won't be for DS2 either. Signing means taking complete responsibility for damages and repairs - even during school time and I'm simply not prepared to do that.

If my child deliberately damages something then I'll pay for a repair and sanction them accordingly. I'm not taking responsibility for other children or accidental damage.

Plus in the afterschool club waiting for the bus (the school bus doesn't pick up until 25 minutes after school as it collects at the other school first) the children are encouraged to chuck their bags in a pile in the corner of the hall. They also maraud all over them to find their bag when their bus arrives - endless things get broken yet it doesn't change.

I worked in schools for 20 years and I just don't think individual iPads coming home every night is necessary. DS1's teacher openly says she also doesn't take one for her child who attends the school due to the agreement they want signed. That tells me a lot.